The History Paradox
by CatherineJosephineMarie007
Summary: Sheldon/OC fanfic. Less fluffy than my normal stuff, but it had to be to become appropriately geeky. R&R please!
1. Boggle: Interrupted

**The History Paradox**

**CatherineJosephineMarie007**

**Author's Notes: Hi! It's been a while, and I've been watching a lot of "The Big Bang Theory", and I think we need one more Sheldon/OC fic to add to the pile. So here we go. I've put this under romance because it contains it, but this is NOT that fluffy. I know, so unlike me :D **

"HOWARD! Come on! It's Klingon boggle night!" Raj called, walking into the engineering lab. His rant was cut short when he saw Wolowitz standing at a bank of computers with a woman. Sheldon and Leonard followed him in, stopping in equal awe and horror at a beautiful woman being alone with Howard.

She was tall, but not overly; taller than Leonard, but that wasn't saying much. She was brunette, with wavy hair contained in a massive ponytail. The mystery woman didn't notice them, instead pushing her oversized black glasses, too old to be called fashionable, up on her nose and peering closer to a computer monitor.

"No, Mr. Wolowitz, that's not right either," she shook her head. "Jackson's troops had to have gone around the ridge there," she pointed on a screen with the end of her pen, "so he could have intercepted enemy forces. Run it again if you please?"

"Hi Howard," Leonard said slowly. "Are you ready to go?"

"Huh?" Wolowitz asked, turning. "Can you give me a minute?" He said with a meaningful look to the mystery woman. He hit some keys on the master keyboard and a battle simulation ran across the screen.

"That's the one." The woman smiled in satisfaction. "Burn that to a disc for me, would you, Mr. Wolowitz?"

"Certainly," Howard said, looking her up and down from neck to tush while she was occupied with her files and book bag. "Oh, Professor Layla Nicholas, this is Dr. Leonard Hoffsteader, Dr. Sheldon Cooper, and Raj Kuthrapali."

"A pleasure." She smiled politely and turned back to her research. "Thank you very much, Mr. Wolowitz." She smiled again. Sheldon couldn't help but stare at her perfect teeth and un-adorned lips. In fact, her entire face appeared devoid of makeup, and she was wearing a large men's t-shirt with a black vest and dark blue jeans. Her feet clunked around in black motorcycle boots that reached to mid thigh. Layla shrugged a satchel not unlike Indiana Jones' over her head and took a DVD from Howard. "Thank you Mr. Wolowitz."

"I told you, call me Howard." Wolowitz cajoled in his 'look at me and find me cute' voice. Leonard rolled his eyes.

"Have a good night Mr. Wolowitz." Layla nodded, turning for the door. "Oh, and enjoy Klingon boggle. I enjoy combining two sets of scrabble tiles on one board, if you feel like a change." She left quickly. No one spoke until the sound of her footsteps faded.

"That is the hottest thing I have ever seen in this lab." Raj observed.

"Hey, what about my special friend Melissa?" Howard asked, clearly offended.

"Like I said, hottest thing."

"Who is she? What is she professor of?" Leonard asked.

"She's a history prof at UCLA," Howard said. "She called a few days ago and Gabelhauser gave her this number. She wanted simulations done on several battles as visual aids for her classes. But they had to be precise, or she wasn't interested."

"How did you make them precise?" Sheldon inquired dubiously.

"Used the battle sequence software from World of War Craft and changed the specifics of the code so we could manipulate where the infantry entered and exited."

"A history professor was interested in _that?_" Sheldon said in mild surprise. In his experience, those involved with history or any other medium that involved interpretation were more than likely to use their imaginations than he.

"Interesting," Leonard nodded. "And she speaks Klingon."

"A hot girl who hates you— and likes Star Trek?" Raj asked Howard, his eyes widening as his mind considered all the possibilities.


	2. Observational Learning and Germs at UCLA

**The History Paradox Chapter 2**

**CatherineJosephineMarie007**

**Author's Notes: I have enough raw material for probably one more chapter and then I'll have to start from scratch again. I have a couple things I want to accomplish in this story, but if anyone has any suggestions for plot events, please message me!**

"Yes!" Sheldon gloated, standing up and letting the 'losers' rearrange the board. He was winning four games to none. Even for him, that was an unusual score.

"Well, I think I'll call it a night." Howard said, slapping his hands on his denim- clad knees and standing.

"Me too, dude." Raj nodded. He got up stiffly from his cross legged position on the floor and grabbed his grey jacket. "See you tomorrow guys."

Howard nodded and waved through a yawn, both men exiting.

"So, Sheldon," Leonard said breezily as his roommate went about his evening routine. "What did you think of Professor Nicholas?"

"She seemed interesting," Sheldon allowed. "Although I rather think dedicating one's life to the study of history is detrimental to one's IQ." The taller man departed in his usual blunt manner to his bedroom, leaving Leonard shaking his head.

"Why are we here, Wolowitz?" Sheldon asked for the tenth time. They passed under the concrete arch that hung over The Sharp Building's front doors. The building was old, and Sheldon was sure he could smell mould.

"Layla Nicholas invited me to see my simulations in action." Howard replied for the first time since Sheldon began his inquisition. "I think she digs me."

"She was just being polite, Howard." Leonard sighed, as though explaining something to a small child.

The four of them entered through a set of wood and glass doors to an old lecture room with red velvet on the walls. It looked like a movie theatre.

"Clearly UCLA's budget is not congruent with CalTech's," Sheldon whispered to Leonard. But his roommate just 'shushed' him and shoved him into a folding seat between himself and Kuthrapali. He shifted uncomfortably. This room was obviously ancient, so it stood to reason the seats had been there at least as long; who knew how many generations of students this hall had seen? How many flu seasons, how much gum and saliva and, he shuddered, mucus.

The class was already in progress, with about two dozen students taking up the first few rows before the raised platform. Professor Nicholas stood relaxed before them, holding a remote for her power point presentation.

"Now, we watched a film last week about the battle of Fredericksburg," she said, her voice projecting clearly through the room. "And, let's face it, it could have been more lively." The students chuckled in response. "But as much as _I _love those old black and white jobs, I thought you might need something more to visualize the situation."

She proceeded to outline the roles of both the South and North's infantries, even making Sheldon smile when she pointed out in a side bar that the Union could have used the help of the Flash to be everywhere at once. Once she'd given some background and asked a couple of questions about battle strategy, all of which were answered correctly, Professor Nicholas loaded Howard's DVD and stood back. "Now I will commence with the visual aids." She smiled.

The battle simulations were accurate, even if the wardrobe of the Confederate and Union soldiers was sadly less so. After a few minutes and viewing the battle from a few different angles, Nicholas shut off the video and looked to her class. "What could each army have done differently? Let's start with the South."

Over the next twenty minutes, the students engaged in an impromptu debate about the strategy and available resources of Lee's and Grant's armies. "Alright!" Nicholas stepped in finally. She chuckled. "I'm glad you're all warming to this topic so nicely, since we will be having a formal debate next week. Students with last names A-K are the Confederates, and everybody else is the Union. Prepare yourselves well. Have a good week."

As the students began to gather their things and leave the hall, Howard stood up. "Let's go say hello."

"Why?" Sheldon asked. "She invited us to observe, not to chat. Can we go home and commence with Halo night now?"

"Right after Howard get's shot down." Leonard reassured him. They made their way through the sea of students to where Professor Nichols was stuffing several notebooks into her satchel.

"Hello, professor," Howard all but growled. God, Leonard sighed, he could even make 'professor' sound dirty.

"Good evening, Mr. Wolowitz." She greeted politely, looking behind Howard to see the others. "Oh, and Drs. Cooper and...Hoffsteader, wasn't it? And... Mr. Kuthrapali? Nice to see you again. What did you think?" this directed at Howard.

"It looked great," Howard assured her. "Sorry I couldn't get them out of their peasant attire."

"Quite alright. I must admit it bothered me, but there was nothing you could do." She looked at the three other men. "Had you ever been to a UCLA lecture before?"

"No," Leonard answered for all of them. "I find your teaching style interesting; you don't lecture, you hold a conversation."

"Yes, I always liked it better that way—it saved me from any undue effort to be the stalwart professor, especially if I'd had a bad day and didn't feel like it. I've also learned over time that students will talk more and without fuss when there's no pressure."

"Your students respond to your queries very quickly." Sheldon observed. "I've always felt that such an example reflects on the style and talent of the instructor."

"Are you telling me that I'm a worthy teacher because my students respond to me?" Layla asked.

"Yes." Sheldon said succinctly.

"Thank you." She nodded. "I'm sorry to teach and run, but I have another class in half an hour across campus; Napoleonic Wars from the English perspective."

"Sounds fascinating." Leonard commented.

"Please, if you ever have nothing to do on a Wednesday night, you should come watch. It's really fascinating subject matter."

"Thank you." He nodded.

Layla considered each of them for a second, then pulled her bag onto her shoulder. "Dr. Cooper, would you be so kind as to escort me to my next class?"

Sheldon stood stock still for a moment. Every bone in his body was telling him to say no, but his mother had raised a gentleman, not an antisocial scientist.

"Alright." He nodded. Layla smiled and stepped aside, allowing him to walk in front of her up the narrow aisle to the door. "Leonard, you'll be able to pick me up?" the bespectacled man nodded, bemused, as SHELDON COOPER escorted the lovely Professor Nicholas to a _history _class.


	3. The Walk

**The History Paradox Chapter 3**

**CatherineJosephineMarie007**

**Author's Notes: Okay, this is everything I had, hopefully the next chapter will be up by Friday! Reviews feed my monster Wendell, who is still traumatised from our move back home from university!**

"Professor Nicholas, why bother to teach history? You clearly have an above average IQ; your intelligence could be put to better use."

"I don't see how," she responded immediately. "I'm a believer in history repeating itself. My one hope as an educator is that I inspire my students to watch for the signs of repetition in our history, and learn from the first time how to guard against it. And please, call me Layla; I only keep up that 'Dr' and 'Professor' nonsense to keep Howard Wolowitz at bay."

Sheldon looked at her, mildly amused. "You've been doing very well; although you should know that Howard views courtship as a 'marathon, not a sprint', I believe. The longer you hold off, the more attached he'll become."

"Good to know," she nodded. "Sheldon—may I call you Sheldon?" after a moment he nodded and she continued. "I'd like to know why you attached your incredible talent to physics." he looked at her after that comment and she smiled. "Really, Sheldon, did you not think you had a reputation around here? I know all about the brilliant wunderkind Sheldon Cooper. But if you'd discovered, say, biology before physics, or even history, would you have cast them aside?"

"I can't know." Sheldon replied. "And I think the speculation is useless."

"Perhaps so," she allowed. "But I often wonder what my life would have been like had I followed in my father's footsteps instead of my mother's." At his sideways glance, she explained, "My mother was a high school history teacher, and my father is a particle physicist." He looked at her and then raised both his brows, the Sheldon version of shock.

"Your father is Enoch Nicholas?"

"Yes. He retired—"

"Three years, four months and two and a half weeks ago." Sheldon nodded. "I know."

"Well, that's impressive." She laughed quietly. Sheldon felt an unfamiliar solidifying in his diaphragm when he heard the sound, but he pushed the reaction away for analysis at another time. Right now they were approaching a tall white brick building lit from behind columns. "I'm a little early, would you mind if I stayed with you until Leonard came to get you?"

"Not at all." Sheldon replied, knowing that logically her staying with him would provide assistance should anyone approach them; safety in numbers.

They sat on the concrete steps outside the building, and she listened while he called Leonard. Then they sat in silence until, about five minutes later, he spoke up. "I believe I would have cast aside everything for physics," he said, answering her earlier question.

"Thank you." Layla smiled.

"Aren't you going to ask me why?" Sheldon was shocked that she was letting such a personal question go so easily.

"I'm a naturally inquisitive person, Sheldon, but if you don't want to tell me, I won't pry. After all, I never told you why I _didn't _choose physics; it defies logic that I should demand a personal confession from you without offering one first." She was silent for almost a full minute, and then said quietly, "However, I do hope that this will not be our final conversation, and that one day you may elaborate on your answer."

For the first time in a long time, Sheldon Cooper was speechless. This woman, so opposite to himself in temperament but so alike in socialization, knew him well enough not to pry, and not to judge. Add on to that her intelligence, and Sheldon could clearly see why Howard was intent on courting her.

After a few more minutes, Leonard's car pulled up, the bespectacled physicist waving from behind the wheel. Layla waved back. "Goodnight, Sheldon." She smiled, getting up and heading inside.

"Goodnight, Layla." He replied, going to the car.

"So how was your walk?" Leonard asked, trying to be nonchalant.

"Enjoyable." Sheldon replied. "For someone who chose to study history rather than physics, Professor Nicholas is quite knowledgeable in a range of subjects."

"Why would she choose to study physics?" Leonard asked, and then immediately gasped. "Enoch _Nicholas_?"

"They very same. She apparently chose to follow her mother's example by teaching history."

"She told you all this in what? Thirty minutes?"

"Yes, she began by asking me why I chose to dedicate my life to physics, then reciprocated with her own information." Sheldon said, looking out the window.

"I see."

The two physicists remained silent for the rest of the ride home.

**I know this one wasn't really an exciting ending, but the next one will be better. REVIEW PLEEEASE!**


	4. REJECTED!

**The History Paradox Chapter 4**

**CatherineJosephineMarie007**

**Author's Notes: I noticed I never disclaimed this before, so here it is: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING! IF I OWNED JIM PARSONS I WOULDN'T BE PAIRING HIM WITH ANYONE BUT ME! Now that's over with, here's a little more intimate contact. At least intimate by geek standards. Oh, and just in case you were wondering, I made up Enoch Nicholas.**

**Technical Note: For the purposes of this fanfic, I've assumed that Layla works at UCLA Education Centre in Pasadena, which his approximately 11 minutes away from CalTech by car. **

"This isn't our regular morning coffee spot," Sheldon observed, obviously annoyed. "How will I know how their sizing compares to Starbucks?"

"Won't matter Sheldon, you aren't getting anything here," Howard answered, his eyes scanning the crowded shop as he spoke. "Hopefully, _I_ am getting something here."

"Gross double entendre, dude." Raj judged, looking over Howard's shoulder.

"But hopefully accurate." The engineer snickered.

"If we don't leave for Starbucks in exactly four minutes, we will be late to work and I won't get in a full eight hours of research." Sheldon complained. "Leonard, if you knew he was taking this detour, why didn't we take your car?"

"Honestly?" Leonard asked, leading the group to a booth near the door. "I wanted to see this happen in person."

"See _what_ happen?" Sheldon was clearly both confused and pissed off, which led generally to an unpleasant day for them all, but Leonard was willing to risk it; Howard making a play at a woman who was better looking and more intelligent than he was? Definitely worth putting up with a crabby and de-caffeinated Sheldon.

Just as Leonard slid into his seat beside Raj, a familiar face entered the shop.

"That's why we're here?" Sheldon practically squawked.

"Shh!" hissed Leonard and Raj.

"We put off work to watch you hit on Layla Nicholas?"

"I am not going to hit on her!" Howard stated. "I'm going to ask her out. And if we just happen to make hot, sweet love afterwards, then so be it."

"Never gonna happen." Leonard said in a sing-song voice.

"We'll see." Howard got up and rushed Layla as she left the coffee counter, a to-go cup in hand. "Bonjour, Layla." He grinned, startling the woman.

"Oh, bon matin, Monsieur Wolowitz," she replied, smiling politely. "Comment ca va?"

"Tres bien, merci." He replied. "You speak very good French."

"Thank you; my mother insisted I learn as a child. I didn't know this was your regular place."

"Oh, here? Yeah, yeah, great cuppa Joe." Howard said; it was obvious he'd forgotten the name of the cafe. "But what a surprise running into you here!"

"Yes, it certainly is." She looked around and saw the others. She left Howard and approached them. "Good morning, boys." She smiled.

"Hello Professor Nicholas." Leonard smiled, while Raj waved. Sheldon waited until they were done before looking over at Howard, who was listening, and saying very deliberately,

"Good morning Layla."

"Good morning Sheldon." She returned, sitting in the booth beside him. "What are you boys doing here? Won't you be late to work?"

"Yes." Sheldon said purposefully, glaring at the others.

"Layla, I was wondering if I could have a word?" Howard said, having overcome her brush-off.

"Certainly," she said. "In private?"

"Uh no, no this is good." The engineer seemed to have regained some of his confident plumage. "I just wanted to invite you out to dinner with me tomorrow night."

"Oh!" she said, surprised. "Well, thank you for your invitation Mr Wolowitz, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline it. I'm sorry boys, I have a class in twenty minutes; I have to go. See you later." Then Layla all but bolted from the coffee shop.

"That's was priceless!" Leonard giggled, while Sheldon let out one of his sputtering laughs.

"When did she tell you to call her Layla?" Howard groused.

"The other night when I escorted her to her evening class."

"Lucky bastard."

"Come on; now we really _are _late." Raj said, pushing Leonard out of the booth ahead of him.


	5. Amok Time Revisited

**Author's Notes: So here we go with chapter 5! Reviews and suggestions are always welcome.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, Howard or Penny. They belong to Chuck Lorre, who should really be more careful about who he lets borrow them :P**

A few days later, Sheldon was lost in his own little world working on the properties behind Stargate SG1, when there was a polite knock on the door. He sighed, setting down his marker.

Layla stood there, in leggings and a huge English soccer jersey. "Hey Sheldon." She smiled.

"Hello Layla." He said. "Did you need something? I'm very busy."

"Doing what?" she asked, pushing past him into his office. At the brief contact, he smelled something resembling raspberries, very unlike Penny's vanilla scent. "Ooh, examining the particle physics behind travelling between worlds. Very Stargate. I like it. But I've come to issue an invitation."

"Oh?" Sheldon asked, telling himself he felt bored with this idle chit chat.

"Yeah; I'm the faculty supervisor for the film society, and every year we do a "future film" segment, and this time we've voted to show Amok Time, and then have a Star Trek discussion after. I wanted to know if you'd come as one of the guest experts."

"Oh I think not." He shook his head and turned back to his board.

"Why?"

"I don't lecture; it's beneath me."

"I see." Layla's eyes narrowed. "Will you come simply to watch?"

"No."

"Right. Well, can you direct me to Leonard's office then?" she asked. Sheldon's head snapped up.

"Why do you want to go to Leonard's office?" he asked blandly.

"I was going to ask both of you to come; even if you don't want to speak, it's still Star Trek on a huge screen."

Oh. In that case, I assume Leonard will make me go. His office is around the corner, through the wooden doors, and it's the first door on the left."

"Thank you." She smiled politely. "I'll let you get back to your...research."

"Sheldon, I don't understand; why don't you want to go?" Leonard asked that evening.

"Simply because I have no desire to sit in one of those bacteria infested theatre seats that will distract me from a perfectly good episode of Star Trek, and then stand around while ignorant students ask basic questions about the episode while possessing an IQ that makes it impossible for them to understand the physics behind the answer."

"You don't know that. They could be perfectly knowledgeable. Layla told me the entire Sci Fi club comes out to this event."

"I don't want to go." Sheldon said, sitting in his spot with his plate of Thai food.

"Well, too bad. We're going. I'm going to call Layla and tell her we'll _both _be there. And you know if you don't show up she'll come to your office. She seems confrontational that way."

Sheldon sighed. "Very well."

The hall was filled with students, laughing and chattering, waiting for the film to start. Several of them had shown up as Star Trek aliens, but more of them as Star Trek officers. Layla stood on the stage with several other academic types. She wore black trousers and a Star fleet command gold sweater. When she saw Leonard and Sheldon come in, she excused herself and approached them.

"Doctor Hoffsteader, Sheldon. I'm so glad you agreed to come." She grinned.

"Call me Leonard."

"Alright." She nodded at the bespectacled scientist. "So Sheldon, what am I giving you in exchange for your presence tonight?"

"Pardon?" he asked.

"I assume since you were so opposed to coming this evening, a form of bribery was involved. What do I owe you?"

"I had not thought of taking a bribe from you; only from Leonard since he was so annoyingly persistent."

"Well once Leonard has done his part, you may feel free to call upon me," She winked at him and turned toward the front of the room. "Come on, I've saved you front row seats."

"What was that?" Sheldon asked.

"She was...flirting...with you." Leonard replied, sounding thoroughly amazed and confused.

The episode was as good as always, although even Sheldon had to admit that seeing it on such a huge screen was a dream come true. Spock was larger than life. When it was over, Layla got up and addressed everyone. "Thank you everyone for coming to our future in film night." The students applauded. "And thank you to Professor Granger from the physics department for bringing his science club, and Dr. Everly from the history department for bringing the Sci-Fi club, which I intend to join now that I've found out you teach Vulcan language classes on the weekends." She grinned and gave the room the Vulcan symbol for 'live long and prosper'. Ninety percent of the room flashed it back. "So, let us commence with our discussion on the physics related to Star Trek and indeed, the entire genre of science fiction. Now, we have the two aforementioned professors here with us, and me of course, and I'd like to present the man that introduced me to the love of my life: the pursuit of truth. My father, Dr. Enoch Nicholas."

Several of the physics majors in the room leapt to their feet, including Sheldon and Leonard. They were, after all, in the presence of greatness. Layla walked to the side of the stage and wheeled her father up. Dr. Nicholas sat royally in his seat, dressed in his signature tweed jacket with the Old World leather elbow patches. She smiled and nodded at the crowd, and then took over the reins of his chair from his daughter.

"Thank you everyone," he said in a deep German accent. "Let us begin."

**Author's Note: So, there you have it. If there are any Trekkies in the audience who would share with me the physics behind some of the Star Trek stuff, then I'm just going to skip to the end where,** **naturally, Sheldon will offend one of his biggest heroes. Hope you enjoyed, please R&R!**


	6. Enoch Means 'Dedicated' in Hebrew

**Author's Note: Chapter six! Wow, I can't believe a couple weeks ago this was just a little plot bunny I came up with behind my till at work. Thank you SO much for everyone who has reviewed, and please keep it up! If you haven't already received one, I'll be sending you a private thank you note!**

Sheldon sat through the mediocre discussion, about the history of time travel in science fiction, being placated by Leonard when a student made a particularly embarrassing assumption. After an hour and a half, Dr. Everly stood from his stool on the stage and grinned.

"Okay everybody, I think we can safely say this debate will not conclude before finals," there was a twittering of laughter from the student population. "We'd like to thank the Film Society for hosting tonight's event, and would you please give a round of applause to our guest speakers!"

Everyone applauded, and students gathered their things to leave. Leonard dragged Sheldon up to Layla, despite his protests.

"I don't recognize the social convention that stipulates we go over and say goodbye to our hostess." He hissed.

Leonard rounded on him. "Sheldon, you _know _the hostess, and for some reason she likes you. Her father is one of the greatest minds in physics, and this may be one of our only chances to talk to him face to face."

The other man sighed. "Very well." They approached at a more sedate pace.

"Hello gentlemen," Layla grinned. "What did you think?"

"The discussion was rather mediocre, but Star Trek is Star Trek." Sheldon replied, barely looking at her.

"It was very nice, thanks for inviting us." Leonard translated, shooting the brunette an apologetic glance. She just laughed.

"You're welcome. And judging by the fact Sheldon is looking past me right now, I'd say you want to meet my father."

"I would be very grateful if you'd introduce me." Sheldon said.

"Us." Leonard interrupted.

"Sure," Layla laughed. "Come on over." She led them over to the older man relaxing comfortably in his wheelchair, signing an autograph for a petrified-looking student. She placed one hand on his shoulder.

Enoch Nicholas was a stately-looking gentleman with an eagle-like nose and dark eyes. His white hair was a little mussed at the front, as though he'd been working before he arrived at the seminar. Layla smiled and gestured to Sheldon and Leonard. "Dad, I'd like to introduce you to two of the scientists I met at Caltech. This is Doctor Sheldon Cooper and Doctor Leonard Hoffsteader."

Dr. Nicholas said something in German, and Layla rolled her eyes indulgently and replied. "He asked if you came as a set because I introduced you together. He thinks he's funny."

"We're just roommates, Dr. Nicholas." Leonard grinned.

"Are they like Ryan and Herman?" Layla's father asked his daughter.

"No." She said defiantly. "No, right?" she looked at Sheldon. "Herman is my cousin and Ryan is his partner."

"No!" Leonard replied quickly. "No, no. Just friends!"

"Good," Layla grinned. "They're both physicists, Dad."

"Oh yes? A worthy pursuit." Dr. Nicholas grinned, shaking each man by the hand. "Welches ist ihres, Liebling?" He inquired in German. Layla bent and whispered in his ear. "Guter Gott. You'd better not have any plans about bedding my little girl, sie amerikanisches Wiesel." He said critically, eyeing Sheldon.

"Daddy!" Layla gasped. "Stop that right now! I'm so sorry." She said to Sheldon, leading him and Leonard away by their arms.

"What did he say to me?" Sheldon asked.

"He called you an American weasel," she replied in embarrassment. "He gets a little carried away. I am his middle child, and he knows things are always more complicated, psychologically, for the middle child."

"That's dime store psychology at best." Sheldon scoffed.

"The man is one of the brightest minds on the planet, Sheldon," Leonard chastised. "You can't just go around calling his beliefs dime store."

"I can if it's true." Sheldon disagreed.

"Don't worry Leonard, you're only in trouble if he hears you." She winked, then stopped dead as she heard the mechanic 'whirr' of her father's electric wheelchair.

"Is this schmuck trying to belittle my opinions?" Enoch asked, giving Sheldon a death glare.

"Now you're in trouble." Layla said on an inhaled breath, looking worried.

"I was simply pointing out that if proper parenting skills are utilised, no child need feel insignificant."

"Have you ever raised three daughters, Mr Cooper?" Dr. Nicholas asked testily, raising one brow.

"It's Doctor Cooper, actually," Sheldon replied, obviously offended. "And no, I find children to be a disturbing addition to the world as a whole."

"Well then, I suggest you leave those who have alone. My Layla's sisters are like their mother, and she is the only one who takes after me. She is my little girl. And you have to respect her fittingly. Undankbar wench." He muttered.

"Come on dad, let's go—I'm sure your car is here by now." She gave the physicists an apologetic look. "Sheldon, would you wait for me? I'll be right back."

"I don't see why I should," he answered. "Your father has been painfully rude, and you obviously let him get away with anything he does or says. I think I'll just let Leonard drive me home and catch the last rerun of Sanctuary."

"Just wait, alright?" she demanded, her eyes flashing dangerously.

Leonard took a whole step back, distancing himself from the hole his roommate was presently digging himself. Sheldon looked a little frightened and nodded numbly. Layla tipped her head in satisfaction and turned away, walking with her father toward the exit.

**So this is meant to be a teaser chapter—what will Layla say to Sheldon after she walks her father to his car? What will Sheldon say in response? What will she rebut? I think you get the picture. I'll try to update before the weekend is out! Thank you for all your reviews! I love you all! **


	7. Khan

**I'm so sorry I didn't update before, but I've been trying to get the most shifts I can for my last week at home, and I haven't had internet until now. SO anyway, I've been working on this chapter for a while trying to make it properly 'geek-mantic'. Reviews appreciated, as always.**

"Why can't you just be nice?" Leonard huffed once Layla and her father were out of sight.

"I was being truthful." Sheldon replied blandly.

"That's not the same as being nice."

"If the truth didn't hurt then it wouldn't be the truth."

"You're not focusing on the distal cause of her father's rage."

"I'm not?"

"No."

"Then pray tell, what is the distal cause?"

"Layla told her father she likes you, in a non- platonic way." Leonard explained. "Obviously Dr. Nicholas sees you as a threat to his daughter's happiness."

"I don't see why."

"It is the social convention of father's overly involved in their children's lives to be protective when a potential boyfriend enters the scene. No matter how _clueless_ he may be. He thinks every man is out to sleep with his daughter and then never call her again, thus breaking her heart."

"Assuming I did all this," Sheldon proposed thoughtfully, "What would be the father's hypothetical reaction?"

"Based on every teen- love movie I've ever seen, the father would show up at the man's home and demand that he reconsider on pain of death. So unless you want Enoch Nicholas showing up at our apartment with a shotgun, I suggest you be nice to Layla in the future."

"Don't be ridiculous," Sheldon did that little huffy laugh of his. "Even if Dr. Nicholas did have some inkling of where I live, he'd never be able to get to the fourth floor in his wheelchair."

When Layla returned from loading her father into his chauffeured Crown Victoria, the two physicists were arguing over the possibility of Enoch Nicholas building a stair-mounting apparatus to get him to the fourth floor.

She looked at them for a minute, then shook her head. "I don't want to know." she declared. "Sheldon, walk me to my car?"

Looking a little out of his element, Sheldon went off with Layla. She was silent until they reached the main doors of the building. "I should apologize for my father. He was a little rude. It's just—I'm his only single daughter, and he feels it is his job to protect me from men on the whole."

"Obviously it has never occurred to your father that you will never stop being single if he doesn't stop protecting you."

"Obviously not," Layla laughed. He couldn't really see her in the half-light from the street lamps, but when she turned to him a moment later, her eyes were shining. "He can be a little overbearing, I know, but you did wonderfully." She looked away. "I knew you would."

"Pardon?" Sheldon inquired.

"I knew you could handle him. I wouldn't have introduced you if I hadn't. Usually meeting my father is the last thing my friends have to do."

"Are you suggesting we're friends?" he asked.

"Aren't we?"

"I don't think so."

"Well, perhaps acquaintances then," she chuckled quietly. "But I would like to be friends with you, Sheldon. Please think about it."

"Alright," he acquiesced. She pointed up a few rows to a tiny black Volkswagen.

"That's me. Thank you Sheldon, I'll see you later." She looked like she was about to do something more, then simply backed away and went to her car. She waved from the front seat, then pulled out of her spot and drove away.

It was several days before any of the boys saw or talked to Layla again. Leonard and Penny had recommenced their on-again-off-again romance, and for a while the five of them existed peacefully as they always had.

When Tuesday rolled around, Leonard decided the subject needed to be broached.

"So..." he began on the car ride to work. "This Thursday 'The Wrath of Khan' is playing on the Sci-Fi channel."

"Yes, I know; we saw the commercial together." Sheldon replied, staring straight ahead.

"Well, Wolowitz and Kuthrapali will want to come over, and Penny wants to see the original Star Trek movies now she's seen the new one, so I was thinking we should order Chinese food...and maybe invite Layla over. "

"I don't see why we should; with five of us our seating is cramped enough, without adding one more person to the mix."

"She can sit next to you. Somehow I doubt you'd mind."

"I most certainly would. You know I don't like to be touched."

"Well yeah, but Layla's different. She wouldn't invade your personal space; she'd just sit."

"Perhaps. But how would we reconfigure the food order to accommodate her?" Sheldon challenged.

"We'll take one of everything and then get a big order of something everyone likes, like Tenduri chicken or something. Come on Sheldon, just call and ask her." Leonard enticed.

"Me call? What a notion. Why would I do that? It was your idea."

"She'll want to hear from you, not me. You heard; she likes you."

"All she told me was that we were acquaintances, but that she'd like to be friends. Your conclusions are a result of feelings from your 'gut' and your perception of subliminal messages. There were none. I was there."

"Yeah, but if we relied on you as a barometer for subconscious interaction, no one would ever get any. Just call her, will ya? You can tell her we all want her to come—it doesn't have to be a group date."

"It wouldn't be a date anyway." He argued. "She wants to be friends."

Layla was in her sunny, book- filled office. She was just moving a stack of tomes from one chair to another when the old brown telephone in her desk began to ring. Cursing quietly to herself, she dropped the dusty volumes and coughed her way to the phone.

"Hello?"

"Uh... hi, Layla? This is Sheldon Cooper." Layla felt her heart do that uncomfortable flip-floppy thing, even though she wished it wouldn't.

"I know who you are, Sheldon."

"Of course, right. I wonder if you saw that 'The Wrath of Khan' was going to be shown on Thursday on the Sci-Fi channel."

"Yes! I saw it advertised this morning. Why?" her heartbeat sped up; Layla could feel her blood thumping through her veins.

"I- well, we were wondering if you'd come over and watch with us." Sheldon was nervous, she could tell. His voice shook a little in the middle.

"We?"

"Leonard, Kuthrapali, Wolowitz, and I. Oh, and Penny."

"Who's Penny?" she said, thinking perhaps she had some competition.

"She's our neighbour. Mine and Leonard's. He's in love with her."

"Oh," she sighed in relief. "well, I- I'd love to come and watch it with you! What time would you like me to be there?" Layla knew of Sheldon's penchant for punctuality.

"Well, we usually go to the Chinese restaurant with Kuthrapali and pick up our order on the way home from work, and then Howard meets us. Penny comes over from across the hall when she smells food. If you could be there by six thirty, you should be able to have ample time to socialize before the movie starts at seven."

"Alright," she chuckled, grabbing a notepad. Sheldon told her the address and she said goodbye, wondering what Thursday night would hold.


	8. The Penny Rapport

**Woo Hoo! Chapter Eight! I have no idea how long this story is going to take, but I do actually know the way it'll end. Reviews are, of course, always appreciated. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the boys, or Kaley Kuoco. If I owned Jim Parsons, he'd be in Canada with me.**

"I'm sorry; a GIRL is coming here?" Penny asked in disbelief.

"Yes. Sheldon invited her." Leonard nodded.

"A girl. Who's interested in _Sheldon_ is coming to this apartment to watch Star Trek and eat Chinese food?" Penny seemed unable to understand. Her perfect brow was adorably furrowed.

"Yes, she's a professor at UCLA. Her name is Layla."

"And I didn't invite her, we all invited her." Sheldon clarified from the kitchen.

"Okay..." Penny smiled, winking at Leonard.

"Hey everybody," Howard said, strutting into the apartment like he owned the place. Raj followed at a more sedate and humble pace. "So, is everyone ready for two hours of Kirk vs. Khan goodness?"

"Plus commercials," Sheldon corrected.

"Where's the food?" the engineer asked, deciding to go on as though Sheldon hadn't spoken.

"We can't start yet!" Penny cried, crossing her arms over the brown bags full of food. "We have to wait for Layla!"

"Layla? Layla is coming here? I _knew _she was interested in me. I could feel it that day in the coffee shop—the undeniable attraction of the beautiful young protoge to the older, more experienced, quirky man of the world." He got a faraway look on his face; none of the assembled wanted to know what his mind's eye was looking at.

"She's not that young, you know." Leonard interjected.

"How do you know?" Penny asked.

"I looked her father up on the internet; it outlined when his children were born. Layla was born in 1983, making her twenty seven."

"One year younger than Sheldon." Penny observed, looking toward the man in question.

"Why should we care how old she is in relation to Sheldon? NO!" Howard gasped. "That day in the coffee shop, she called you Sheldon, and you called her Layla. That meant something—it's all coming back to me now."

Right on cue, the buzzer beside the front door made an unattractive 'errr' sound. Three men and a woman made a mad dash for the button, Leonard reaching it first.

"Hello?"

"Hi, it's Layla," an uncertain voice said.

"Hi Layla, one second!" he said, turning to his roommate and pressing his back against the door. "Be nice."

"Why should I go and get her?" Sheldon asked, looking thoroughly offended.

"Because you invited her!"

"I did not, we ALL invited her!"

"Both of you shut up, I'll go and fetch the damsel in distress." Howard made to move Leonard from his post of blocking the door knob.

"Not a chance." Penny interrupted. "None of you are getting anywhere near this girl before I've prepared her. Trust me, if she's going to spend three hours here, she'll need it." And with that the blonde elbowed her boyfriend out of the way and headed for the stairs.

Layla took one step back from the intercom and looked down at herself. She'd decided not to dress up nor wear makeup, so she looked basically as she always did; dark jeans and a white military blouse, complete with double buttons along the front. She'd opted, however, to leave her thick brown hair waving around her shoulders, a look none of the boys had seen thus far in their friendship. She stared nervously at her black flats and striped socks as she waited for someone form the apartment upstairs to come fetch her.

_Come on, you can do this. You can be cool in front of male geeks for once in your life. You can say hello and eat and not be a complete freak. _

Finally, the front door opened and a petite blonde stepped into her view. "Hi!" she bubbled. "I'm Penny."

_So, this is Penny, the neighbour. _Layla thought, covertly looking the woman up and down. Pink sundress, matching wedge flip flops, and a sweet smile. _Perhaps not a threat for _Sheldon's _affections, if in fact Sheldon Cooper does _have _affections, but she`s cute enough I suppose._

"Hello, I'm Layla Nicholas." She shook the blonde's hand.

"I know. Leonard told me all about you." Penny gave her a wink and gestured for Layla to precede her up the green- carpeted stairwell.

"What's with the wink?" she asked in confusion.

"Well, Leonard told me you sort of had a thing for Sheldon. I was showing some geek- lover solidarity."

Layla blushed. "I admit, I do admire Sheldon greatly, and if an intimate relationship were to present itself, I'm sure I would enjoy it, but Sheldon doesn't really seem the type, and frankly, neither am I."

"You mean you don't date?" the two women rounded the first landing and continued upwards.

"Not if I can help it. My mother occasionally sets me up with boors from her social circle, but usually they're just older buffoons who want someone under thirty on their arm to impress all their friends. Apparently they like to make everyone _believe _they're getting laid."

Penny laughed and nodded. "I hear that. I'm from a really small town in Nebraska, so by about age sixteen you realize that the guys that are there are the ONLY ones you're ever going to get. You make your own fun from there. Oh, here we are."

The two entered apartment 4A and were immediately accosted by Howard.

"Well bon soir; if it isn't my two favourite girls."

"No we're not." Penny replied, barely looking at the engineer. Layla smiled politely and shook her head, moving to sit beside Sheldon. The theoretical physicist had already stationed himself in his 'spot', knowing that as a newcomer, Layla would be unfamiliar with the rules.

"Hi Sheldon." She smiled, sitting next to him at a respectful distance.

"Good evening Layla."

"Are you excited for 'The Wrath of Khan'?"

"I suppose," Sheldon answered. "Although I have seen this film over two dozen times."

"You're kidding! So have I!" Layla laughed. "I held the record at my high school in Boston. I made the school newspaper, much to my dismay."

"Hi Layla, you went to high school in Boston?" Leonard asked, breaking into the conversation.

"Hey Leonard. And yeah, when I was a teenager my father still taught at Harvard, so we lived in Boston until his term ended and my mother cajoled him into moving to California."

"Intriguing." Howard waggled his eyebrows.

"Is it time for the movie yet?" Layla asked, leaning mere millimetres closer to Sheldon.

"Yeah, almost." Leonard said, pushing Penny to sit with him on the remaining sofa space, so Howard was forced to keep a distance from Layla.

Silence fell as the opening titles rolled. After Kirstie Alley's Kobayashi Maru practice drill, Layla sighed in disappointment. Sheldon looked down at her and raised an eyebrow.

"What? I just always get disappointed when I see everyone calling him 'Admiral Kirk'. If he could have denied that promotion, he should have."

"Why? He earned it through many years of dedicated service." Sheldon argued.

"Perhaps so, but by promoting him Starfleet Command has divided their most successful team and possibly endangering the galaxy and leaving Earth open to attack. Also, on what planet does 'Admiral Kirk' sound better than 'Captain Kirk'?

"Your second point is not valid." He grumbled.

"Congratulations, you've just found the world's thinnest argument." Howard joked, obviously enjoying himself.

"We all know _you're _only agreeing with her because you're thinking with your _penis_." Sheldon sniped. "However, I will accept that by promoting Captain Kirk, Starfleet was making the classic mistake of separating a crack team from its leader."

"Thank you for acknowledging my line of reasoning." Layla nodded, turning round again to face the television.

"Thank you very much, Sheldon, Leonard." Layla smiled when the film was over and they were all left stretching and yawning as the end titles ran. "I appreciate you inviting me into your home."

"It was no trouble; the more the merrier, right Sheldon?" Leonard looked to his roommate.

"That would depend entirely on the emotional state and stability of the 'more', and you call them, and their own group dynamics, including the preconception of friendship—"

"Just say yes, Sheldon."

Layla laughed and shook her head. "Well, thank you anyway. Now, I think I must be going."

"Already?" Howard asked, rushing to stand and block her path to the door.

"Yes; it's nearly ten thirty, and I have to teach a class tomorrow morning. Goodnight, Sheldon," she smiled, shyly, patting his hand.

"Good night." He replied, moving the hand she'd touched from his knee to rest in his lap.

Layla mentally berated herself. _He doesn't like to be touched, you dolt,_ she reminded herself too late. Standing, she turned to the other woman present.

"Penny, would you mind walking me out?"

"Sure." The blonde replied, disentangling herself from the couch and Leonard, who'd placed one arm around her shoulders and acted like a pillow at some point during the film. The two left the apartment and began to descend the stairs. They'd reached the third floor before Penny spoke.

"You gave Sheldon a run for his money."

"Hardly," Layla scoffed. "Discussing the pros and cons of Starfleet promotion is a laughable subject when conversing with someone who possesses Sheldon's mind."

"Huh?"

"He's really smart, and our little argument was hardly a challenge for him."

"Oh. I like you—you can break down geek talk." Penny giggled. "Maybe now you should invite him somewhere."

"Pardon?"

"You know, he invited you here, now you should wait a couple days then call him for lunch or something."

"Sheldon would see right through that!" Layla argued. They were now approaching the first floor.

"You'd be surprised," Penny disagreed. "We have to warn him when we're going to use sarcasm; someone like that will not realize you're making a stealth date."

"Well... I'll think about it." The professor nodded, reaching out to open the front door. "Thanks Penny."

"Hey, sometimes it gets a little annoying being the only girl around here," Penny shrugged. "I could use some female company."


	9. Emotional Instability of Female Nicholi

"Has she called you?" Leonard inquired carefully. He and Sheldon were on their way to work a few days after their 'group date' with Layla.

"No," Sheldon replied in his usual characterless tone. "Why would she?"

"Well, because she likes you, and I thought she might."

"Well, she hasn't."

Leonard thought he detected a little bit of disappointment in the other man's tone, but he didn't dare mention it. Sheldon had a tendency to shut down if you accused him of showing emotion.

"So, are you going to call Sheldon?" Penny asked. She and Layla were out window shopping with smoothies from Second Cup, browsing through shops—Penny through the clothes, Layla through books.

"I dunno," the other woman sighed. "Do I really want to complicate his life like that? I mean, my family is INSANE, and you know my Dad told my Mom about him after the fiasco at the Star Trek night."

"Well, it's not like you're going to sit in his spot or lick his food or anything," Penny scoffed. "It might be good for Sheldon to get out once in a while."

"Maybe. Should I call him, since he called me to invite me over the last time? I don't know the social protocol for that situation."

"Wow," Penny groused. "You really _are_ perfect for Sheldon."

The four academics were sat around Leonard and Sheldon's apartment that evening when the telephone rang.

"Ten bucks its Layla." Howard said.

"You've been wrong so far; I'll take that bet." Raj nodded.

Leonard reached for the phone. "Hello," he said curiously. "Yes, he's right here." Looking nervous, he brandished the phone at his roommate. "A woman for you."

"Pay up, dude." Raj demanded. Howard, looking annoyed, slapped a ten dollar bill into the astrophysicists' outstretched hand. Meanwhile, Sheldon took the phone.

"Yes."

"Is this Sheldon Cooper?" a posh female voice asked.

"Yes..."

"This is Amelia Nicholas. I believe you know my middle daughter, Layla."

"Yes, I do," Sheldon replied, feeling an unpleasant sinking sensation take place in his midsection.

"Well, my husband told me he'd met you, and then he read a few of your papers and pronounced you worthy of an invitation to our annual intellectual get- together."

"Uh...please thank Dr. Nicholas for me, but I don't think I will be able to come." He wanted to get out of this social engagement as quickly as possible.

"Oh, nonsense," Mrs Nicholas tutted, "I was rather hoping to have you take Layla; she's the only one who isn't assured to attend with a date. My youngest daughter, Diana, she's such a little debutante, never a problem with the male species—"

"Yes, Mrs Nicholas, I um... I suppose I could talk to Layla about going together, but I have a very busy schedule, ma'am, and I can't promise—" he was lying through his teeth, and he could imagine his mother looking over his shoulder disapprovingly.

"Of course, of course, you call Layla, young man." She giggled girlishly. "I hope to see you this Saturday."

"Goodbye, Mrs. Nicholas." Sheldon hung up the phone and looked at his friends. "Layla's mother. Nothing important." He said, picking up his Chinese food and turning back to the rerun of 'Battlestar Galactica' they were watching.

"You did WHAT?" Layla screamed. She was sitting in her office the Monday after she'd gone to Leonard and Sheldon's. Her mother had called, even though she'd specifically forbade her from calling her at work, to tell her the embarrassment she'd foisted on Sheldon. "Mother, why would you call Dr. Cooper?"

"Because your father was impressed by one of his papers," Mrs. Nicholas replied, sounding bored. She'd never had much time for physics. "And I thought it might be nice if you came with a date at least once, dear."

"I didn't ASK you to find me a date, Mother, and I have no intention of forcing my company, not to mention yours, on poor Sheldon. We've been trying to be _friends._"

"It's useless to be friends with men, dear." Her mother advised. "Just get what you want."

"Yes, well, thank you Mother, but I need to go. I have work to do."

"Oh, of course you do, dear, just like your father." Amelia sighed, obviously disappointed. "I'll see you later."

"Goodbye." Layla slammed to phone back into its cradle and heaved an enormous sigh. "That damned woman." She said to herself.

Just then, someone knocked on her door. She looked suspiciously at her clock; 6:00 am. What student would come to her office so early? Nonetheless, she called, "Come in."

To her surprise, Sheldon Cooper entered the room. He looked about at her floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with dusty volumes and alphabetically ordered DVDs, and smirked.

"Good morning, Professor Nicholas." He said, standing stiffly before her desk.

"Good morning Dr. Cooper." Layla smiled politely, a faint blush rise to her cheeks in light of her recent telephone conversation. "To what do I owe to the pleasure?"

"Your mother called my house last night." He replied, never one for pleasantries.

"Yes, I know," she blushed redder. "She called this morning already. I'm so sorry, Sheldon, I didn't know she was going to do this. She's...well, you spoke to her: did she sound like a rational human being to you?"

"Assuredly not." He scoffed. "I find it very unlikely that you came from the womb of that emotionally unreliable woman."

"Um...thank you, I think." Layla grinned. "You can obviously see my father was telling the truth when he said that I take after him."

"Yes, well." Sheldon said, looking away uncomfortably. "Your mother said you'd never come to this event with anyone before."

"Well...no. I don't want to expose my friends to my parents or my sisters. They're all nuts."

"I see." Sheldon nodded and then turned abruptly toward the doors. "I need to go, Professor; Leonard is waiting for me in the car."

She nodded, looking down at her blotter as she heard the door close. A few seconds later, Layla swore colourfully and bolted out of the miniscule office and whipped the door open.

"Sheldon, wait!" she gasped, hardly daring to believe her own audacity. "Would- would you like to come with me? You don't have to be my date, we don't have to even show up together...it's just, my father has some very high- up friends, and it would be a shame for someone as brilliant as you to miss them."

Sheldon hesitated halfway down the deserted hallway. This was something new entirely; Layla had admitted she'd heard of him, but never had she called him 'brilliant'. Obviously she was trying to flatter him, but still he was intrigued.

"Who?" he asked suspiciously.

"Well, I read the guest list the other day, and Dr. Sieberg has sent an RSVP."

"Nathan Sieberg?" Sheldon took a step closer.

"The very same. And Edward Witten comes every year; he and his wife are good friends of my parents'."

"Well... I suppose I could come..." he looked torn between the quandary of a social engagement and the chance to rub elbows with some of America's great physicists.

"I can pick you up, and then we could duck out early. You don't have to stay and get grilled by my mother and my older sister."

"Very well." Sheldon groaned. "Saturday, right?"

"Yes. And I do hate to ask, but could you perhaps wear a nice pair of trousers? I just don't want to give my mother ammunition."

"Very well." He said again. "I have to be going."

"Of course." Layla smiled. "Thank you, Sheldon, I appreciate it."


	10. Kinneloa

**Author's Note: Wow, Chapter 10! Thank you SO much to everyone who was kind enough to leave a review, and I hope I don't disappoint you with this next instalment.**

***Just FYI: I picture Mr and Mrs Nicholas living in a home like this, only with very different taste; picture a lot of marble floors, reds and golds, and brocade curtains. **

**.com/property/pasadena/a_mediterranean_**

**Disclaimer: I feel obliged at this point to remind you all that I do not own The Big Bang Theory or the house shown in the link above. Shocking, I know, but life does go on.**

On Saturday, Layla was barricaded in Penny's apartment effectively vetoing most of the dresses in the blonde's closet. Owning very few dresses herself, Penny had insisted she come over with what she was wearing. Personally, Layla didn't see what was wrong with her modest black dress with lace overlaid skirt, but apparently Penny thought it was too 'old fashioned'.

"But I _am _modest," she defended the sensible boat neck and cap- sleeved cocktail dress. "This is my parents' party, Penny, not The Standard."

"I'm surprised you know about The Standard." Penny scoffed.

"I went to school in LA, Penny, I know about every club even if I've never been to them."

"Well, if you're not going to wear any of my dresses, at least let me loan you some jewellery." She held a pair of earrings out in the palm of her hand. They were purple stones, polished but not shaped, and beautifully clear.

"Amethyst?" Layla asked, smiling as Penny nodded. The brunette took them and went to Penny's full length mirror, threading the straight pin through her ear. "They're lovely, Penny."

"Thanks. The boys bought them for me for my last birthday."

"And these don't have Leonard's name all over them," Layla teased. "He's loony for you."

"I know," Penny sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do about him."

"Well I'd like to talk about it, but frankly this night is about me, and right now _I_ need to know how to handle Sheldon if he gets..."

"Annoying?" Penny supplied.

"I was going to say 'out of hand', but sure."

"Just threaten him with some vandalism to his comic books. Works for me."

***Meanwhile, across the hall...**

"I'm very uncomfortable." Sheldon observed. Leonard rolled his eyes.

"Sheldon, tonight you are going to rub elbows with some of the most amazing minds in our field that are still alive; surely that makes up for not liking to wear a blazer."

The gangly scientist was wearing a pair of black slacks, a white t-shirt and black sports jacket, having simply refused to wear a tie. _Typical,_ Leonard thought.

"We'll see." Sheldon replied. Right then, there was a knock on the door and Penny entered. "Generally one waits to be allowed entry after a knock." He groused.

"Sheldon, I live across the hall and I'm here nearly every day; deal with it." Penny replied. "May I present Miss Layla Nicholas?"

"Good lord, Penny, don't be so dramatic." Layla replied, stomping into the apartment. Sheldon's abdomen performed an uncomfortable tremor as he looked at her in the modest black dress with the lacy flounce for a skirt and long legs in attractive heels. Her hair was subtly curled and she wore Penny's purple earrings. No other jewellery. For the first time since they met, she wore a light sheen of makeup; gloss on her full lips and her blue eyes clear without her glasses. He gulped.

"Good evening Layla." Sheldon nodded.

"Hi Sheldon," Layla replied. She smiled, holding her hand toward the still-open front door. "Are you ready?"

"Yes." The scientist nodded again. "Good evening Leonard, Penny."

"Have a great time!" Penny waved.

"I'm sorry, but my parents live in North Kinneloa Ranch," Layla said as they climbed into her car. "It'll only take about twenty minutes."

"Fine," Sheldon sighed, buckling himself in. Layla smiled to herself and revved the engine, heading east on Orange Grove Boulevard.

"I need to warn you, my mother's parties are notorious for being covered by the press. So when we get to the gate, be prepared for photographers."

"Why would they care about an academic's party?" Sheldon questioned.

"Well, my mother is a distant Kennedy cousin, so everyone gets their knickers in a twist when she throws a party."

"I see." He said, although it was clear he really didn't.

They drove in silence for about ten minutes, and then they rounded the crest of a hill and approached a wrought iron gate. Surrounding it were fluorescent orange barricades and a dozen or so reporters. Layla uttered several turns of phrase under her breath that his Sheldon looking at her in shock.

"What?" she laughed when she noticed his stare. "I went to _all four _years of public high school. If you had, you'd develop a skill for profanity too."

Sheldon decided not to comment on this, since she was rolling down her window and speaking to the young security guard manning the gate. "We're here for the Nicholas' party." She informed him, showing her driver's license.

"O-okay," the young man nodded, waving her through. He seemed very unnerved by the loud mass of reporters, who attempted to ride through the gate on the back of Layla's car. The guard pulled them off and Layla sped away.

Whew," she breathed. "The easy part is over."

"The easy part?" he replied, forgetting himself and showing a little bit of alarm.

"Yeah," she pulled into a cobblestone driveway where several valets were moving vehicles. The house behind the car park was massive, a Spanish- style structure with iron pillars and rounded windows cheerily illuminated. "Now comes the hard part."

"Layla!" a familiar voice rang through the marble foyer, where yet another staff member was checking coats. _This _must _be the mother,_ Sheldon thought to himself as a tall brunette woman glided toward them. She was dressed in an olive green dress that cascaded to the floor, and the top of it had a strange sort of collar. This was accompanied by too much gold jewellery. "Darling, there you are!"

"Hello mother," Layla smiled obligatorily and hugged the heavily powdered and perfumed woman. It was obvious where Layla had inherited her height. "This is Dr. Sheldon Cooper; Sheldon, my mother, Amelia."

"Oh yes, Sheldon!" Amelia cried, pecking his cheek. "Enoch is in the study, smoking that dreadful pipe. Really, dear, I wish you'd dress up a little."

"I did dress up mother; this is hardly what I'd wear to work." Layla argued quietly, mindful of the nearby guests.

"Well, too late now, I suppose. Oh, there's the Steins!" she bubbled, moving off to the portly couple who'd just come in without another word.

Layla let out a breath and visibly relaxed. "As you can see, she's just as much of a handful in person."

"Yes, I see." Sheldon looked around at the guests already assembled; several of them stood in the marble-covered foyer, complete with Greek statuary, drinking cocktails and surveying everyone who walked in the door. A few more stood up the three marble steps to the rest of the main entryway, looking out at the marvellous view the eight-foot-tall windows provided, or chatting and eating crab cakes. He could smell them, and, as a waiter moved past carrying a gilded tray, see them. Through the archway on the left of the huge windows Sheldon could hear classical music, and he deduced this must be the ballroom.

"Come on; let me do a quick sweep for my sisters and then I'll take you to daddy." She whispered, putting one hand on his elbow and guiding him toward the ballroom. As much as he valued his personal space, Sheldon discovered being touched in such a casual way was not as revolting as he'd imagined.

"Couldn't we just go to the study?" he complained.

"No, and when we get to the ballroom, you'll see why." Layla held her ground, and they entered the more crowded room.

The parquet floor glistened, and in front of another large bank of windows an orchestra played a Viennese waltz. Several couples danced, and about two dozen more watched from the sidelines. He noticed almost immediately that almost every man in the room, whether he was with a woman or not, turned to look at his companion.

"Layla, everyone is staring at you." He observed, using a low register as not to be overheard.

"I know," she replied, gazing at the people assembled, trying not to make eye contact.

"Why are they staring?" Sheldon asked, as it was obvious she was not going to volunteer any more information.

"Because I've dated at least two thirds of them," she replied, moving finally, her hand still on his elbow. "Sheldon, put your arm around my waist."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I know Penny said you weren't into violating personal space, whether it was yours or others', but all these old letches are looking at me like I'm the dessert cart. That needs to stop. In order for it to stop, they need to see I've brought a man with me, and therefore they can go back to their wives or whichever lonely widow they were trying to seduce. Please, Sheldon, just do it." Layla finally looked at him, her eyes pleading. Sighing in a long- suffering way, he complied. "Thank you." She whispered. Sure enough, several of the men they passed averted their eyes.

A tall blonde waved to Layla, and she waved back. "That's my sister, Emily." She explained as they approached her. "Hey Em."

"Hi sweetie, how are you?" Emily replied, hugging Layla tightly. "I wish mom would let us bring the kids to these things; our babysitter costs a fortune."

"It'll be a cold day in hell before mom lets children under the age of nineteen roam loose in her parties." Layla scoffed. "Oh, and this is Dr. Sheldon Cooper, a colleague; Sheldon, this is my sister, Emily Scott."

"Nice to meet you," Sheldon said dutifully.

"And you, Dr. Cooper." Emily smiled pleasantly.

"Where's Henry?" Layla asked.

"He went to get us some drinks about fifteen minutes ago; no doubt he was corralled into some group of men talking about England in the time of Cromwell or something." She laughed.

"Any sign of Diana?"

"As if." Now it was Emily's turn to scoff. "Unfortunately, our little sister actually has a life, and it has nothing to do with stuffy museum parties."

"Well, Sheldon and I are here," Layla rebutted. "We may not necessarily have lives, but we do have work to do."

"Oh yes?" Emily turned to him. "What do you do, Dr. Cooper?"

"I'm a theoretical physicist at Cal Tech." He answered.

"Oh, so dad invited you?" Emily surmised. "I'm sure he'd love to see you both—oh my god, Lay, look who just walked in."

The two turned to see a short blonde with perfectly coiffed curls bounce into the room. She was wearing a boldly printed dress that flowed around her sandals, and she was on the arm of a man Sheldon had seen on the cover of Penny's magazine last month.

"Oh no, not another one," Layla sighed, pasting on a bright smile. "Hi, Diana."

"Hey Layla!" the blonde cried happily. "This is Justin; Justin, these are my big sisters, Layla and Emily."

"Hey," the muscular man nodded.

"Uh...right. This is Dr. Sheldon Cooper." Layla introduced.

"God Layla, you have the weirdest taste." Diana groused, making both she and Sheldon blush in embarrassment.

"Diana, Sheldon is a physicist; dad invited him tonight."

"Whatever; I'm sure he's holed up in his office, right? Explaining equations scribbled on papyrus."

"They use grease boards now, but kudos for knowing papyrus." Emily said, winking at her youngest sister.

"Well, we just stopped in to make mom happy; we have to go to a club opening in Malibu tonight." Diana boasted.

"Come on babe, car's waiting." Justin said. And with a wave, the youngest Nicholas girl disappeared into the crowd.

"Ugh, we're going to find dad." Layla told Emily.

"Yeah- send Henry back if you find him, will you?" the other woman asked. Layla nodded and pulled Sheldon away.

"I can't believe she had the audacity to bring him here." She whispered when they got out into the hallway again. "She couldn't bear to come to a party without a date, even an inappropriate one."

"Surely your objection isn't to do with him being famous or wealthy," Sheldon said. "Most women, I imagine, would be glad their sister found such compatibility and a comfortable situation."

"Yes, well, I don't envy my sister her Neanderthal," Layla scoffed. They headed across the foyer and into the right side of the hallway, where the corridor split in two; one side was bustling with wait staff and trays, while the other housed absolutely no movement. There was one door at the end of it. "Men like you, Sheldon, are light years beyond what women like Diana can even register in a man." They reached the door, and she knocked and pushed it open. "Welcome to my sanctuary."


	11. Poker and Interruptions

Enoch Nicholas' office was a physicists' fairy land; the room was windowless, allowing for perfect concentration, total sensory deprivation, no distractions. One entire wall was covered from floor to ceiling in grease boards; more than half of these were filled with colour- coded notes. Sheldon was awestruck, looking from the boards to the bookshelves across the room like a child in Disney land.

Layla watched him closely as he walked through the narrow room. She smiled at his amazed expression. "After Daddy's ALS put him in a wheelchair, he had the boards put in all the way to the floor—makes it easier for him to reach everything." She said. "I'm sure if you asked _nicely_, he'd take you through them."

"What?" Sheldon asked, looking over his shoulder as though he'd just remembered she was there.

"I _said_," she repeated patiently, "that my father might take you through his newest theories if you don't behave like an asshole again."

"I hardly think such name calling is necessary," he narrowed his eyes at her. "Besides which, I thought your father was retired."

"Oh he is, but you should know that there's no turning off a true calling." She walked down the perfectly smooth mahogany floor toward the back wall, on which hung a brocade curtain. Pulling it aside, she revealed another door. "After you," she smiled. Sheldon opened the heavy door and peered cautiously inside. Four scientists sat at a round table in an antechamber. Cigar smoke filled the air just above head level, and several languages were being fired back and forth.

"I am not going on there!" Sheldon hissed furiously. "Have you read the study from _Science Daily_ that states exposure to second-hand smoke appears to be associated with psychological distress and the risk of future psychiatric hospitalization among healthy adults?"

"Sheldon, I have just four words for you; no pain, no gain." Layla winked and walked into the laughing group. "Hallo Papa!" she smiled, kissing the wheelchair bound man on his wrinkled cheek.

"Guten Abend, mein Liebling!" Enoch said merrily, taking a puff on his cigar. Apparently he was in a much better mood tonight. "Ah, Sie brachte die unhöfliche ein!"

"Papa!" Layla cried, obviously annoyed.

"Ar tai palei Amerikos žymę?" Dr. Jupitus, one of her father's friends from college, chuckled in Lithuanian. "Jis tikrai atrodo kaip apgailėtinus wretch."

"Jis yra ne tai erzina wretch! Jis yra tiesiog... konkrečios." She replied. Sheldon raised a brow—_Layla speaks Lithuanian? _He was drawn into the room against his will.

"Er ist eine ärgerliche kleine turd." Dr. Nicholas scoffed.

"Aber er ist ein brillanter turd. Und nicht rufen ihn, dass! Sie könnten nur unterstützend sein." Layla cried. "Vielleicht könnten Sie für mich anstrengen?"

"Sehr gut mein little man." Enoch patted her hand. "Come in, Dr. Cooper," he said in English. "We were about to play poker. Would you like a hand?"

"I-" Sheldon looked at Layla. Although he was not a wiz at reading cues, the way she nodded at him was easy to interpret. "Yes, thank you." He sat next to Layla and took the cards from her father, trying not to breathe unnecessarily. After a moment of studying her own cards, she looked over at him.

"Sheldon, you can breathe, you know," she whispered. "I'll get you your inhaler when we leave."

"How did you know I needed an inhaler?" he asked, feeling a little paranoid.

"Penny told me." She replied. "I asked for information about any possible concatenation of circumstances. So she gave me your inhaler, just to be prepared."

Sheldon did a double take. No one had ever made such preparations for him before. He looked at his cards, quickly falling into the pattern of Texas Hold 'em, although he hadn't been paying attention. Dr. Nicholas and the tall balding gentleman continued to trade what he could only assume was trash talk in different languages.

"Don't worry," Another of the poker players said to Sheldon. "You get used to not knowing what's going on. Nicholas and Jupitus routinely trade languages like they do chips. This is actually how I learned to speak German."

Sheldon looked at the man who had spoken and felt his jaw slacken. Sitting beside him was Nathan Sieberg, renowned American physicist that contributed to string theory—he worked on string theory. Ten minutes with this man and he could literally have his mind blown.

"Alright, gentlemen," Layla said, taking a drink of her father's pint. "I am the big blind which means Sheldon is the single blind, and Grahame," she looked at Jupitus, "Turns the river card when it's time. Let's play."

Layla traded English trash talk with Graham and the other man, who, to Sheldon's surprise, ended up being Edward Witten. He actually got over the stars in his eyes to offer a few lines himself.

"Read em and weep, lady and gents." Witten grinned, setting his cards down with a flourish. Everyone else groaned, tossing their hands down as Edward Witten collected his pot.

"Daddy, I'm going to show Sheldon around outside; he's an asthmatic, and I'm sure he could use a break by now."

"Very well love," Nicholas nodded, collecting the cards to shuffle. Sheldon and Layla got up and left the anteroom, closing the door and the curtain behind them.

"My mother hates it when my father smokes in the house, so when they renovated this house he had the secret room put in. This way, she doesn't have to know."

"Your parents seem to be very separate." Sheldon observed as they left the office and took the other hallway toward the kitchen. Layla turned off just before the doors and suddenly they were in a private parlour decorated with Victorian antiques. She opened the patio doors, revealing perfectly manicured grounds.

"Yeah, it's always been a mystery to me why they got married," she replied. "Dad always said they were young and impetuous. Better friends than lovers, but they just got carried away. And after we came into the picture, they just stayed together for the sake of normalcy."

"I see."

The grounds were huge, with a long pool nestled in the space between the wings of the enormous home. Loungers were set on the cobblestone patio as though people had just vacated them.

"What do you think?" Layla asked as they walked toward the edge of the lawns.

"Although the outdoors is not my forte, the arrangement is pleasing." Sheldon nodded. As they got closer to what appeared to be a hill, he saw a staircase leading to a gravel path. Beyond that was an orchard.

"Why thank you for the ringing endorsement." She laughed, descending the stone steps and looking over her shoulder at him. "The orchard is pears, and the smell is lovely when they bloom." The two of them stood at the foot of the steps. The sun had just set, leaving the sky a dusky purple. Fairy lights lit the arbours to their left, giving a dim glow to the concrete bench beneath. "Would you like to sit?" she asked, gesturing to them.

"Certainly." He nodded, letting her sit down first and then l situated himself next to her. He waited a moment, then turned to her. "What did your father say about me in German?"

"Oh," she blushed. "Well, first he said that I'd brought the annoying scientist, and then Grahame asked if you were the American tag a-long. And I told them that you were brilliant, and that...they should be nice, since..." Layla looked away, out over the orchard.

"What?" Sheldon requested, clearly confused by the personal turn the conversation had taken.

"Well, since I...like you. And I told my father that he could just be supportive, and not judgemental. Because I like you."

"I see..." he said, although it was clear he didn't. Layla laughed self-depreciatingly and patted his hand.

"Would it be better if I just exemplified my hypothesis?" she asked.

"I suppose it would go great lengths to helping me understand what you're proposing." He answered. She nodded and took a deep breath. Just as she was within kissing distance, and he wasn't pulling away, a muted crash sounded from immediately to their right, and a half- naked Diana pranced out, an equally dishevelled Justin hot on her heels. She stopped dead when Sheldon stood hastily and moved away from Layla, alerting her to their presence. Pushing her dress back up her chest, she gave her big sister a look.

"Did I interrupt something?"


	12. Fool in Love with a Fool

**I'm in the library for right now, but I only have a few minutes remaining on my session! I'll try to give you guys a whole chapter, but it might just be a teaser! Sorry!**

"Yes, as a matter of fact you _were _interrupting." Layla replied rudely. "I thought you two were leaving."

"Oh, we were. But we got kind of…distracted." Diana giggled girlishly as Justin wrapped his arms around her from behind and buried his nose in her hair.

"Of course you did." Layla turned to her companion, who was looking quite disturbed. "Sheldon, I'd like to go back to the house now, please."

Sheldon nodded gratefully and led her back to the stone steps. Layla stomped up them angrily as he let her go first, following quietly behind.

"Your sister really didn't interrupt anything but the silence," he said reasonably. "Which, I grant you, is an unforgivable annoyance, but there really isn't any reason to get so angry."

"Yes, Sheldon, there is," she rounded on her toe and stood looking down at him from two stairs up. "I was trying to test a hypothesis, and she _ruined _it!"

"Well, were the parameters of your experiment specific to the locale we just left? If not then I don't see why you can't simply attempt your trial again."

"Well, it was sort of riding on the orchard providing an acceptable background, so no, I won't test it again tonight. I don't fancy making a fool of myself twice in one evening." Layla ascended to the main lawns, this time more slowly.

"You never specified what 'it' was," he realized aloud.

"No, I didn't. The analysis would have spoken for itself," she answered. "Sheldon, you ask Penny; I'm sure she could explain it to you much better than I could."

"I doubt it." He replied. "Penny doesn't seem to possess any sort of empirical mind whatsoever."

"Trust me for once on this one—Penny will know." They walked back to the house, where you could hear the orchestra playing through the huge glass windows and open patio doors. "Come on, Sheldon; we'll hide in the study for a little while, talk some physics with the boys, and then I'll take you home."

Once Layla told her father they wanted to talk about his newest theories, he dropped his poker hand immediately and they all began to analyze the boards in the main study. She sat in one of the velvet armchairs next to the enormous bookshelves and watched, amused, as five of the greatest living minds of physics argued, coloured markers in their hands, about the future of string theory.

"Thank you for coming tonight Sheldon; I really appreciate it." They were sitting in Layla's car outside Sheldon's apartment building.

"I must admit, despite dreading the entire event, I had quite a good time." He replied.

"I'm glad—I had a nice time too." She grasped his hand tightly for nary a second, then her long elegant fingers were back on the wheel, and he was exiting the car. "I'll see you later." She smiled as he shut the door, waiting for her to drive off before entering the building.

**Okay, so that's all for now—I was doing this so I could set up for a Penny/Sheldon science versus human nature discussion later. So hopefully I can get another chapter up later this week, if school permits. Thanks so much for your reviews, you're amazing!**


	13. Science vs Seduction

**Author's Notes: FINALLY I have a new laptop, and now we finally get mutual pleasure in writing and reading new chapters! So I hope you enjoy!**

_Knock knock knock _"Penny." _knock knock knock _"Penny." _knock knock knock_-

"Sheldon!" Penny said gleefully. "Come in! How was last night?"

"Tolerable." Sheldon replied. "I had an interesting evening with Layla's father."

"But not Layla?" the blonde looked disappointed.

"She was an attentive host, though it was difficult to overlook her family. Layla was showing me around her parents' orchard, and the tranquility was interrupted most rudely by her younger sister and her boyfriend copulating amongst the trees."

"Oh...well would you like to see her again?"

"I see her all the time, Penny; last night was no different."

"Well it was," she said as though explaining something to a small child, "Because you met a girl's family. That's important. Now you said you were in the orchard? What happened there?"

"Nothing," he replied. "we were discussing a hypothesis she was proposing a test of, and then her sister interrupted." Unexpectedly, Penny started to laugh. "Well I don't see what's funny about it," Sheldon groused. "Diana was very rude, and partially disrobed when she made her little appearance."

"No, it's not that Sheldon," she giggled. "I just don't think you realize what she was talking about." Penny sat next to him on the sofa and patted the scientist's hand. "Sweetie, the experiment she was talking about...she was going to kiss you."

"I beg your PARDON!" Sheldon replied crossly. "Layla wouldn't impose upon my personal space that way. She realizes my need for a bubble."

"She also really likes you," she explained patiently. "Personally, from the way she's been talking to me, I think she's got a crush on you."

"What poppycock!" he scoffed.

"Look Sheldon, I got an upset text message from her this morning, cursing about the head of her history department being an idiot. Now, if you're so sure she hasn't got the hots for you, you'll go to Starbucks, buy her a tea- Earl Grey with lemon- and you'll go down there and ask her."

"Are you _daring_ me?" Sheldon asked in disbelief. "I don't have time for your childish games, Penny."

"Sounds like someone's avoiding..." she answered in a sing-sing voice. "Look Sheldon, I'll pay for the tea, and I'll drive you down there."

Sheldon, never one to back down in a competition of wills, rolled his eyes. "Alright, fine." he replied determinedly. "Come on."

Ten minutes later, Sheldon found himself standing outside the Shap History Building with an Earl Grey tea and an annoyingly animated Penny.

"Good luck," she squealed, waving as she drove away. He entered the building and took the ancient marble stairway up to the second floor.

Her office door was shut, the precise black letters **PROFESSOR L. NICHOLAS** looked out at me. He heard a few signs of life from inside, however, and decided to knock. As Leonard was fond of saying, 'what's the worst that can happen?'

After he'd knocked three times in rapid succession, his custom, he heard Layla's angry voice through the door.

"Jesus christ Barry, stop knocking, or I swear to whatever god you believe in that I will throw something hard and heavy at you! I won't sign that goddamned contract, and that's the end of it! Hurensohn, goddamned motinos sušikti...røv ansigt!" she screamed, mixing her languages. Sheldon knocked again, this time suffixing it with her name. The door flew open, leaving him a little surprised.

Layla stood there, her hair in disarray, holding her glasses and a scheaf of paper. Since her eyes were free of their normal barrier, he could see their red rims and based on the evidence, he could safely assume she'd been crying. Sheldon also noticed she wasn't wearing her shoes, and she looked much smaller without them. "Oh, Sheldon," she breathed, blushing. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to curse like that at you. It's just the head of my department called me into a meeting this morning, made me cancel my class, and demanded I cut my own funding by twenty percent." She let him in, sinking onto her tiny sofa.

"Why? Surely if he's the head of your department, he could cut the funding without your signature."

"Of course, but I recieved extra funding for things like Howard's consultation, and I was supposed to take several of my best students to Zimbabwe with a colleague for an archaeological dig, funded by the university. And some of my best students are the poorest ones; they can't afford to go unless the school foots the bill. So I'm screwed."

"I see." he stood uncomfortably, not having time to procure a 'spot'. "So when you said you wouldn't sign, you mean he's been pursuading you?"

"Very forcefully," she scoffed. "Barry- fucking- Robinson is threatening to have the Dean revoke my tenure for insubordination."

"Is that not illegal?" he asked, handing her the tea he'd forgotten was in his hand.

"What's this?" Layla asked, eyeing him.

"Tea," he replied as though it were obvious. "Penny told me you liike Earl Grey with lemon, correct?"

She laughed a bit. "Yes, it's perfect; thank you, Sheldon." she turned one of those bright smiled on him, like the one a few weeks before when she'd come over for Thai food night. "This is very sweet of you. Please, sit."

"I haven't been allowed to test seating for optimal shade and sun ratios, drafts, visual obstalces, or any of my other usual parameters." he replied.

"Oh," Layla stood and gestured with her free hand. "Well, I need a few minutes with my tea anyway- please, be my guest."

For the next ten minutes, Sheldon tested her sofa, her armchair, desk chair and the one opposite it. She simply watched him work, waiting patiently and quietly sipping her tea. Finally, he ended up sitting where she'd been before, next to the rumpled contract.

"This vantage point allows me to view wherever you may sit comfortably, is warmed by the sun coming from your windows behind the desk, but does not get direct sunlight." he ruled.

"So you're satisfied?" she asked, sitting in the chair next to the sofa.

"Yes." he nodded.

"Good. Now, tell me why someone who claims to be as socially awkward as you would bring a girl tea when she's having a bad morning."

"I spoke to Penny," he broached the subject as delicately as he knew how, "about your hypothesis last night, and the means you were going to use to test it."

"Oh yes?" Layla simply looked politely interested. "And what were her conclusions?"

"She believed that given your description of a biochemical experiment and her own observations, that you wished to pursue a mode of physical contact."

"I told you she'd understand." she smiled. "Sheldon, I am believe that life is logical, and that it is a series of choices. You don't fall in love against your will, on some level, you choose it. To give you an analogy that I believe will illustrate my point, if Christine Chapel had broached the subject of a physical relationship to Spock logically, as a biological imperative to mate with her own neuro-chemical overlay, then he may have been more disposed to come to a conclusion in her favour, don't you agree?"

"Perhaps," Sheldon said evasively, trying to wrap his overly- large mind around the concept of Spock and Chapel pursuing a sexual relationship, never mind he and Layla.

"Well, than doesn't it stand to reason that if I ask you for such a relationship, but portray my thoughts without human emotions getting in the way, it would be more logical, therefore you would be more likely to accept?"

**Author's Note: Hi again, sorry about the huge delay, and I'm sorry about this cliffhanger, but I _desperately_ need to go grocery shopping. So I'm going to post this, and pretty- please review so I have something nice to read when I get back! Love and a smiling oragutan to you all!**


	14. Budgets and Girl's Nights

**Author's Notes: Thank you SO much to reviewers; I'm sorry I haven't updated sooner—I had SUCH trouble with this chapter, so I'd really appreciate the feedback.**

**I've also found a song on Youtube basically MADE for Sheldon. It's called, 'Because I'm Awesome' by a band called The Dollyrots.**

Sheldon Cooper was one part disgusted, two parts intrigued. The fact that Layla would change their relationship paradigm so thoroughly and without any sort of advanced notice was perfectly inexcusable, yet he found it amazing that a woman like Layla and a woman like Penny should be operating on the same frequency when it came to base psychological affairs. This last thought was what inspired him to say, in a very level voice,

"I would not go so far as to prohibit it, but in your emotionally charged state I find the discussion of such things improper."

She sighed and sat back in her chair. "You're right; getting so upset about my work is not conducive to a logical and rational conversation."

"Indeed." he picked up the pile of papers. "May I?"

"Oh, of course, go ahead." she smiled. "I don't imagine any harm would come from it; honestly, my mind is so boggled that it'll be a relief to talk to someone about the actual content."

With his super-fast reading abilities, Sheldon was through the contract in about five minutes. "Well," he said reasonably. "Based on the projected budget from the school, it isn't surprising that this

Robinson fellow is demanding you cut your funding. However, there must be some way of compromising."

"There is." she sighed. "Resign my position and start looking for another university to take me."

"I really don't think such extreme measures are necessary," he answered. "If you and your archaeologist colleague both cut your own funding by less of a percent margin, the remainder should be enough to send all of your students to Zimbabwe."

Layla gestured to the chalk board on the wall to the right of her desk. "Show me the math."

He did, and when he'd finished, she was beaming at him. "Sheldon, you're a genius."

"That is a truth universally acknowledged." he replied dismissively. She laughed and approached him, then she took an enormous chance by placing a fleeting kiss to his cheek.

"But this- I've been planning this dig with Burt for a year, and you've saved it."

Sheldon wasn't sure what to say or do- on the one hand, he could comment on the dig she was planning, or simply reply with 'you're welcome'. But on the other hand, she had just kissed him, and the flipping sensation he'd felt when they first met was back, and now he felt quite nauseated. The result was a nearly unintelligible series of syllables. She looked at him curiously, but thankfully decided not to comment. "Thank you Sheldon; but oh my god, you're going to be late for work! Did you at least stop by the university before you came here?"

"No," he replied. "Penny made me come first."

Layla laughed. "Come on, I'll drive you to work." They left her office and approached her car in the parking lot behind the building. "I'm going to go ahead and assume that since you like routine, you have a route?"

"Yes, don't take Euclid." He replied, glad to see someone took his opinions into account. In ten minutes they were pulling up in front of the Applied Science building. "Thank you for the ride." He said politely, just like Leonard had taught him.

"You're welcome," Layla smiled. "And thank you for your help." Sheldon nodded and got out of the car, walking quickly to the doors without looking back.

_Knock knock knock. _"Penny." _Knock knock knock_. "Penny." _Knock knock kno_—

"YES, Sheldon," Penny interrupted his usual three knock process. "I need to go to work tonight, so make it quick."

"I think the conclusions you made this morning about Layla were correct." He spoke even faster than normal. "And I want to know what to do next."

Penny grinned. "Well, you should do something together. Be creative—put that big brain of yours to more…romantic use." She winked at him as she locked her front door. "But not this Friday—me and Layla are having a girl's night. See you tomorrow, Sheldon." She slipped past him and skipped down the stairs.

"His grandmother calls him Moonpie?" Layla giggled. "That's adorable."

"If you think so." Penny rolled her eyes. They were in Penny's apartment, season 2 of _Grey's Anatomy_ playing on her TV. "You really have it bad. And he's all flustered, like he just found out string theory was a lie."

The brunette laughed again. "Don't be so dramatic, Penny."

"Now, what you really want," Penny skipped over to her room, "If you want to snare Sheldon, is something like… this!" she shook a tiny little red dress in front of Layla's face.

"Absolutely not. Sheldon is not like that. Besides, I'm against those little scraps of spandex and lace you call a dress. For moral reasons."

"You're such a freak." She giggled, tossing the dress at her friend and slamming back a shot of tequila. "Just try it on! We aren't going anywhere tonight, I promise."

"No."

"Just do it!"

Fine, but if we're going to play the 'who can be the biggest slut' game, we need music." Layla

sauntered over to Penny's stereo, her Cosmopolitan still in hand.

"But _Grey's_ is still on." She protested.

"So? You think Ellen Pompeo is going to show up at your door because we drowned out her monologue with—" Layla pushed a CD into the slot, "Angel Dumot- Schunard?"

Penny grinned and joined her new friend in screaming the lyrics to 'Today For You, Tomorrow For Me', even though it was obvious neither of them could sing. Layla slipped into Penny's bedroom and tugged the miniscule dress over her head, stepping out of her jeans as she put the garment over her hips.

Over the noise came—"Penny." _Bang bang bang. _"Penny!"

"Uh oh," she giggled to herself, obviously having drunk one shot too many. "It's Sheldon.

Hey Sheldon!" the blonde grinned, yelling over the music. Sheldon barged in, stomping over to the stereo and hitting 'pause'.

"That music was unbearable—you know we could hear it clearly across the hall?" the gangly scientist berated her.

"Oh, calm down Sheldon; it's a four minute song."

"Penny, there's NO way this is fit for public perusal," Layla called, revealing herself in a blood-red mini-dress with insubstantial spaghetti straps. Far too much of her slim pale legs were visible; all the way up to mid-thigh. She spun around, trying to see herself as she backed out the door. "Seriously, you've worn this? OH SWEET JESUS!" she cried when she saw Sheldon standing in her the living room. Sheldon jumped at her exposed form, turning completely around and shutting his eyes tight. There was a tense silence as Layla ran back in to get changed, then Penny burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry," she gasped when Sheldon glared at her, eyes still closed. "But what are the chances you'd waltz in here just when Layla was trying on one of my teeny-tiny dresses? You two have the worst sense of timing!"

"Shut up, Penny," Layla groused, coming back into the room, dressed again in her jeans and green polo shirt. "Sorry Sheldon, I didn't mean to practically flash you. How are you?" she smiled despite the obvious blush in her cheeks.

"Fine, although I could have done without seeing approximately eighty percent of your body."

"Well, thank you for that. Can I talk to you out in the hall for a minute?"

"If it's privacy you want, there are more appropriate places to get it."

"Well, the hall is the only option I'm giving you today. Hallway."

Sheldon followed her out, looking to Penny with a frightened expression on his face. She just smiled and gave him a cheeky wave.

"I'm sorry, Sheldon." Layla blushed. "But when you tell a woman you could have done without seeing her body, she might take that to mean you find her unattractive. I understand that you have very little sensation in the way of physical attraction, but I've already told you I'm attracted to you, so I suppose I should give you a useful frame of reference for later, should you be so inclined to 'make a move', as I believe is the colloquialism." she leaned up and quickly pressed her lips to his. Her torso was pressed slightly into his, one hand on his collarbone. "There. I've made an illogical move. I've made a fool of myself first, so it won't be as difficult for you. Courting isn't any fun if it's easy, or so I'm told." Then she gave him an impish grin and went back to Penny.

Sheldon stood out in the hall, one shoulder leaning onto the wall, trying to hold in a panic attack. Again, the shift of his and Layla's relationship made him want to get out a whiteboard and study it, but she had just put her mouth on his! The statistics on the bacteria living in the human mouth were running through his mind at an alarming speed, and his eyes were bugging out—he could feel them.

Leonard poked his head out into the hall. "Sheldon? Are you okay? We got worried when you didn't come back."

Although he desperately wanted to scream about germs, Sheldon swallowed his objections for his own dignity, and replied, "Perfectly. Penny and Layla were simply participating in a group ritual that I have learned are quite regular occurrences with the female population."

"Oh for god's sake, Sheldon, it's just a girl's night!" Leonard cried. "Come on; Howard and Raj are ready to start _Spider Man_ without you."

The taller man nodded and re-entered his apartment, head held high. Of course, he brushed, flossed and rinsed with mouthwash before sitting down for the movie.


	15. Lyrids, Part One

**Hey everyone: this is going to be a sort of 'pivotal' chapter, the one where our dear whackadoodle has 'the talk' with Layla. And I'm sorry it took so long—I hate midterms.**

"So she _kissed _you?" Penny was having a hard time wrapping her head around this latest development. "She knows about your deal with germs, right?"

"Yes, she is quite aware of it." Sheldon nodded from his appropriated 'spot' in her apartment. It was 11:02 AM, and Penny was still in her pyjamas; since it was two minutes after, he'd pointed out she wasn't allowed to punch him in the throat.

"Did you like it?" Penny eyed him seriously.

"I am having some conflicting emotions about the whole experience, to be truthful."

"I'm gonna need more than that, Sheldon."

"Well," Sheldon opened the notebook perched on his lap. "I've been recording some of my observations." He hesitated for a moment, then handed the ledger over to his neighbour.

L.N. Log 1

Identifiable Symptoms:

Sweaty palms

Increase in physical ticks

Heartbeat irregularity

'Butterflies'

Inexplicable urges to touch L.N. despite obvious violations of own personal space

The red dress

Penny looked at the other pages, flipping back and forth. "That's it?"

"I just started it," he protested. She rolled her eyes.

"Okay, fine…wait, Sheldon—did you look these up on the internet?"

"No. I have exhibited these at certain intervals during the time I have known Layla. You know I don't lie." He argued under her intense gaze.

"Yeah, okay." The blonde sighed and looked over the list again. "Well, I'd say you definitely like her. And you liked the red dress, huh?"

"Well, on Layla… she's not the type of woman to wear something like that. I don't even think I've ever seen her bare shoulders. It was a surprise to say the least."

"So do you want to kiss her?"

"I think you'll find, Penny, that the point of this conversation was that I have _already _kissed her."

"No, she kissed _you_." Penny clarified. "You see Sheldon, kissing is all about who initiates it. If you were to kiss her, that would mean you _want _to, so she knows you like her."

"I see…" Sheldon replied, although it was clear his overly large mind was currently going through its knowledge rolodex to file this information away, as well as suss out its context. "So since she kissed me, she was in control of the situation. But that would shift if the one in control shifted."

"…Exactly." She replied. "So, maybe to know for sure if you like her, you have to make the switch."

"That is surprisingly sound logic, Penny." He looked at her in mild astonishment.

"Well, thank you." Penny rolled her eyes. "Now, are you going to call her or not?"

Sheldon thought of a moment, then replied. "I thought maybe I'd call her and show her around the physics department."

"Seriously? That's your idea of a romantic day?"

"I don't _do_ romance, Penny. If Layla likes me as much as you insist she does, then she'll accept my invitation no matter what I propose for enjoyment."

"Oh honey, you have so much to learn." Penny patted her friend's knee and stood up. "But I guess if there was one girl you could mess up with and she'd still take your calls, it would be Layla. Go ahead, whackadoodle; have fun, for a change."

"Hi, Sheldon," Layla smiled as she opened the door to her office and saw her standing there. Sheldon may have been oblivious in social situations, but the way her face lit up when she saw him was pretty obvious. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I-I was wondering what you were doing today?" he said, wringing his hands together in her threshold. "I thought I could show you around CalTech."

"Really? The physics department?" she looked at him suspiciously.

"Of course; I've had very little experience with the other branches of the university."

She laughed a little, and grabbed her bag. "I would be delighted."

For the rest of the afternoon, he toured her through the physics department, talking about lasers and childhood experiments. It turns out Layla and her father had built several potato launchers and electric rockets, killing by accident a few neighbourhood cats and breaking dozens of windows. "Ooh, my mother was MAD," she laughed delightedly. Sheldon told her about his home-made MRI and his sister's hamster. She laughed, then asked, "How old is your sister?"

"Missy's my twin." He replied.

"Really?" Layla grinned. "Is she intelligent?" She knew this was a loaded question, and was expecting an interesting answer. She was not disappointed.

"No." Sheldon replied bluntly. "She's a hostess at Fuddruckers."

"Oh dear." Layla sighed. "And that obviously means she's popular, gorgeous and has huge tits."

Sheldon shuddered at the use of the word 'tits', but nodded.

"Not surprising." She turned to him, a nervous look in her eyes, almost as though she were afraid to speak. "Do you like meteor showers?"

Confused at this swift change of topic, Sheldon answered. "I suppose, yes. I find the entire phenomenon very humbling."

"Like you're the tiniest, most insignificant thing on a little planet in the middle of an infinite, beautiful space; I'm familiar with the sensation." She smiled knowingly. "It's just, my sister invited me to have dinner with her and her husband, and then watch the meteor shower. They have these hammocks in the back yard, and it'll be wonderful. I just wanted to know if you'd like to come. My brother in law is an amazing chef—his father is a saucier instructor at Le Cordon Bleu."

"I don't know…" Sheldon was filled with visions of his food being touched, and, once his consciousness reminded him that Emily had children, infantile crying. The entire scene didn't sound appealing.

"I can vouch for their kids," Layla promised. "Gregory is ten and interested in entomology, and Isabelle is six, and loves me and Nancy Drew." She winked. "Very little crying, I promise. And then they'll put the kids to sleep and it'll be just us grownups."

Sheldon was torn; he wanted to spend more time with Layla, as much as he hated to admit it, but he was loathe to involve himself in a social situation in order to do so. His really did enjoy his time with Layla, and her older sister seemed perfectly nice. In his head he could hear his Mee Maw saying, _Sometimes you have to break a few eggs to make an omelette, Moon Pie._

"Alright, I suppose that would be fine." His companion grinned and launched herself at him, winding her willowy arms around his neck and squeezed.

"Thank you, Sheldon," she said happily. "I can't wait to watch the Lyrids with you."

On Thursday, Sheldon got Leonard to drop him off in front of an unfamiliar apartment building. It was red brick, and had windows that were rounded on the top and filled with stained glass patterns. It was obviously very old, and everything modern added to it made it look a little tacky. He approached the buzzer panel, quickly reading the name tags. _L. Nicholas_ was under the buzzer of '3D'. He pressed the button and held it for a minute. Soon, Layla's voice came over the intercom.

"Hello!" she called.

"Hello, Layla, its Sheldon Cooper." He answered.

"Come on up!" he could hear the smile in her voice.

Sheldon heard a loud 'buzz', and he grasped the door handle. He whipped out his bottle of Purell and disinfected his hands on his way up the stairs. When he got to 3D, he knocked in his familiar pattern. Annoyingly enough, his breath nearly left him when she answered the door.

She was wearing a navy kimono dress that went down to her knees, and she was wearing matching wedge sandals. Her hair was in a curly mess of a pony tail, and the smile on her face was beatific. "Hi!" she grinned.

"Hello." He replied dutifully. She stood back to allow him entrance to her home, and he stepped in. The hall was painted a calming green, and the kitchen was on the left through an archway.

"Come on in, I'm just going to put in my earrings and then we can go." She turned, leaving him in her living room. Her sofa was white, and it faced a television mounted on the wall. The counter from the kitchen abutted the couch. Unexpectedly, there came the sound of claws scampering on the wood floor, and a black and white puppy came barrelling into the room. It jumped at his pant leg, showing him pale blue eyes, and then seemed to lose interest in him. "Oh, sorry," Layla called, coming down after the puppy. "That's Dahlia. Don't worry about your asthma; she's Great Dane and Labradoodle mixed, so she doesn't shed." The woman fell to her knees and petted the creature on its spotted head, and scratching its pale nose.

Sheldon nodded nervously, watching gratefully as she disinfected herhands before grabbing her purse. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes," Sheldon nodded, pressing his own boundaries as he put a hand on her back as they left the apartment.

Emily and Henry Scott lived in a two-story beige brick home in an old neighbourhood of Pasadena. As they pulled up the driveway, someone in the house switched on the outdoor lights so they could climb the porch stairs without difficulty. Layla knocked and Emily opened the door, smiling and hugging her sister tightly.

"How are you two?" she asked, leading them inside. "I'm glad to see you survived our parents' party, Dr. Cooper." She winked back at him over her shoulder. They walked down a mahogany floor, passing a formal sitting room and dining room before entering an impressive kitchen. A man in his early forties was at the stove, whisking a sauce.

"Henry!" Layla cried happily, kissing her brother in law on the cheek. "This is Dr. Sheldon Cooper; you two didn't get a chance to meet each other at the party."

"A pleasure," Henry smiled, looking over his shoulder. "I'd shake your hand, but I need both of them to season."

"That's quite alright." Sheldon nodded. Suddenly, a happy little girl dashed into the room and launched her tiny body at Layla's leg.

"Auntie Layla!" she squealed.

"Darling!" Layla returned, sweeping the girl into her arms and squeezing. They both looked to him, and Sheldon was startled to see they shared Amelia Nicholas' light blue eyes. "Isabelle, meet my friend Dr. Cooper; say hello."

The little girl stuck out her tiny hand and said in a tiny voice, "How do you do?"

Sheldon took one of her fingers with his hand, amazed to find them clean and non- sticky. "Hello."

"Auntie Layla, can you read me The Moss Covered Mansion to me after dinner?"

"Well, we'll see." She looked at her companion's face; Sheldon looked a little frightened at the thought of her leaving him with strangers to go read to a child. The three of them followed Emily into the living room, where a tall boy with spectacles was reading an enormous textbook. "Gregory, meet my friend Dr. Cooper."

"What are you a doctor of?" the boy asked, barely looking up from his reading.

"I'm a physicist." Sheldon replied, watching the boy carefully.

"Cool." Gregory replied. "Do you want to see my bug collection?"

Sheldon looked intrigued. "Um…okay." He followed the boy up the stairs across the hall from the kitchen, spurred on by Layla's encouraging smile. Once he'd gone, Emily looked to her sister.

"So, how are you two?"

"We're moving forward, slowly." Layla replied, sinking into the sofa with Isabelle in her lap. "I kissed him the other day."

"Do you love Dr. Cooper?" Isabelle asked. At six, she didn't know the implications of that question.

"I think so," she answered, giving the simplest answer she could to the little girl. "I like him very much. He's very smart too, I think you'll like him."

"He's really _tall_." Isabelle observed, making her mother and her aunt chuckle. A few moments later, they heard Gregory's voice on the stairs.

"I keep asking Mom and Dad to take us to Florida so I can collect a Southern Pine Beetle, but so far my requests have fallen on deaf ears."

Layla smiled, never realizing until this moment how alike Sheldon and her nephew were.

"It is the constant struggle of the young scientist," Sheldon sympathised. "Growing up in Texas, I hoped nearly every year for snow so I could observe more of the hibernation cycle of caterpillars. That was when I was much younger than you, however, and had not discovered physics."

The two of them walked into the living room, and Sheldon looked up to meet Layla's gaze. The gentle smile that graced her face made his heart beat faster, though there was no physical reason for the change. Uncomfortable with sitting without checking every possible spot, he quickly surveyed the room and realized that since all the windows in the tall room were almost above his height, and since the sun was setting, he could really sit just about anywhere. His companion grinned at him when he sat beside her, and Gregory hopped up onto the ottoman facing him, his insect encyclopaedia balanced on his lap.

"Okay, everybody, dinner is ready!" Henry called, heaving a silver platter down the hall away from them. Everyone stood and followed Emily's husband. Isabelle was still balanced on her aunt's hip, and they were conversing animatedly on the subject of Ned's relationship with Nancy Drew. Without breaking her train of thought, Layla's hand snaked over and gripped the very ends of Sheldon's fingers. He looked at her in shock, but she simply kept listening to her niece, her blue eyes flicking to him for a moment, and her lips curling up in a kind of secret happiness, before pulling him around the door frame and into the Scott's dining room.

Henry was indeed a wonderful cook; and it appeared they had both been prepped in advance for his standards, since Emily showed him the downstairs powder room as her husband and sister got the kids settled. She seemed to be a nice lady, and against his better judgement, he found himself liking her and her husband. Henry was a mathematics instructor at UCLA, which is where Layla had met him and introduced him to her sister. Emily, he found out, wrote for an online literature publication.

"So, Sheldon, I hear Dr. Nicholas was very impressed with the papers you wrote," Henry laughed. "I'm glad someone his daughters bring home impresses him; as a mathematician, I can usually understand him, but I'm afraid my comprehension stops at about the fourth theoretical dimension."

"I have been an avid admirer of Dr. Nicholas for some time," Sheldon allowed. "I was very surprised to hear he liked my work, given our first meeting." He looked at Layla.

"Hey, don't look at me," she laughed from beside him. "Sheldon basically criticised all of Daddy's beliefs regarding how we were raised, Em."

"Oh, so he doesn't think you're the rebellious middle child, prone to tantrums and running away from home when you don't get your own way?" Emily laughed happily.

"I ran away _one _time, and it had nothing to do with Dad." Layla defended. "And if that theory was true, you'd be the favourite, not me, and Diana would be the smart one instead of you."

"That's silly." Gregory replied. "Aunt Diana is very nice, but her IQ is hardly more than average."

"You have no idea," Sheldon told the boy, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, yes; your unfortunate encounter with her and 'Justin' at Mom's party." Emily giggled and Henry chuckled lowly. "I am glad you don't let the least among us taint your opinion of the best, Sheldon." She winked at her sister.

"Indeed not," Sheldon scoffed. "Your sister can handle my friend Wolowitz with amazing skill, and that in itself was enough to doubt my belief that she was just another history professor who had a propensity for being 'flaky'." He used his air quotes.

"And I can speak Klingon, and I'm accomplished and give you a run for your money intellectually." Layla bumped his shoulder with hers.

"I will agree to the first two, but the last is simply too fraudulent to be borne." He argued, and she laughed evilly. Emily spent the next ten minutes running interference while the other two fought their way through math, physics, English, history, psychology and popular psychology. Every once in a while, Henry or Gregory would add something to increase or decrease the opponents' theoretical points.

Finally, Isabelle put an end to the conversation by hopping down from her chair and climbing into Layla's lap. "Auntie Layla, I'm sleepy."

"Oh yes, love?" she asked, effectively ignoring Sheldon. "Do you have enough energy to, say…go upstairs and get me your book and change into your PJs?"

"Yes!" the little girl cried, literally zooming out of the room.

"Sheldon, I'm afraid we're going to have to finish this debate later," she winked. "I have to read to my niece about a stately home with its own jaguar."

"If you ruin it for her again, I swear…" Emily warned. A few moments later Isabelle rushed back in wearing an 'Incredibles' night gown and brandishing a hardcover. Layla grinned and looked to her 'date'.

"Sheldon, what do you say you and I wash the dishes while the women handle the kids for a change?" Henry asked, laughing as his wife threw a napkin at him. Sheldon nodded and began to help the other man collect dishes.

Once they had everything soaking in soapy water, Henry turned to him. "You know Sheldon, as the last man to permanently enter this family, I have to say, you… are not what we expected."

"In what way?" Sheldon was used to feeling socially inadequate, but he wondered in what way he was this time.

"Well, we all sort of assumed that Layla would steadily get older, and get more engrossed in her work, and one day she'd be fifty, retire to the Amazon, and send letters every three months." The other professor sighed. "My sister in law is lovely and fun, but thanks to Enoch, doesn't get out much. And she didn't get a lot growing up except intellectual praise and over-wrought nit-picking. She doesn't love the way other women do; neither do Emily and Diana. Em was painfully shy when I first met her; she couldn't even look me in the eye. And Di… well, Diana is a total diva. But the point is Sheldon—I know that you aren't great with people, but something in her has just latched on to you. I guess this is me telling you to 'handle her with care'." He laughed.

Sheldon picked up a sponge and nodded thoughtfully. "I see. Up until now, I really had no idea why she wanted to spend time with me at all. But we are both extremely intelligent." He paused so long that Henry thought he was done. "Sometimes my chests constricts around her."

The other man ran one hand through his greying brown hair and grinned. "That, my friend, is the beginning of the proverbial 'snowballing effect'."


	16. Lyrids, Part Two

**Okay, I usually have something clever to say here, but I just saw Jim Parsons on Sesame Street and there are no words. Queequg471 had basically a squee fest for about ten minutes. We actually had to **_**pause **_**the movie we were watching to squeal. So, go watch it on youtube if you have a spare minute. It is SO CUTE.**

When Sheldon and Henry finished the dishes, Sheldon walked back to the living room to find an interesting sight; Layla was curled up in her sister's easy chair, Isabelle in her lap, reading from Nancy Drew number eighteen. The little girl's eyes were lit up and she had a smile on her face. Layla smiled at her niece and turned a page. He stood there watching for what felt like ages, until Isabelle's blue eyes started to droop. A few minutes later, she was asleep and Emily was lifting her up to tuck her in.

She caught sight of him and her cheeks flushed pink. "I didn't know you were watching."

"She does seem to like you a great deal." Sheldon replied. "I never knew you were…good with children."

"Well, Emily and I helped out with Diana; you can imagine how temperamental she was as a toddler," he raised his brows in understanding. "It's sort of nice to spend time with Izzie and Gregory; as long as you're yourself, children don't rush to judgement." She stood up and went over to the patio doors behind the chair she'd previously occupied. "Would you like to come out and test the hammocks?" she winked and walked out the doors, leaving them open behind her. He was unable to stop himself from following her. The very thought that this woman could rob him of his freewill annoyed him to no end, but when he saw Layla walking out in the garden, the moonlight illuminating her smile, his heartbeat sped to an alarming pace and he found himself closing the doors and following her out onto the lawn.

"So, how did you like the children Scott?" she asked when he'd caught up her.

"They were by no means as sticky or as irritating as I had imagined they would be." Sheldon acquiesced.

"High praise indeed." She smiled, stopping to take off her shoes.

"Layla, I really must protest," he squawked when he saw what she was doing. "Do you know how many bacteria there are in fresh grass?"

"Sheldon, it's grass," she explained patiently. "If we couldn't fight off the bacteria, we wouldn't be allowed to walk on it by law." He could see her smirk, and he knew her teasing tone by now, so he shuddered nonetheless but swallowed his lecture.

True to her word, Sheldon saw two white hammocks tied between two matching sets of maple trees near the fence. "The couple who owned this house before Emily and Henry planted these specifically for hammocks," she explained conversationally. "Or at least, that's what he said. Wanna test one out?"

Sheldon inspected the knots to ensure they were suitable, then sat cautiously on the edge of the white piece of fabric. "There are only two," he observed, knowing he was breaking his own rule by stating the obvious.

"Yes, we'll have to share," Layla replied patiently. "But if we lie perfectly straight, there shouldn't be any more touching than necessary." She rounded the maple tree at the head of the hammock and sat on the other side, swinging her bare feet up and putting her right arm under her head. "See?" she smiled at him. "Emily and Henry are just setting Gregory up with his telescope and pyjamas; they should be down soon."

He nodded stiffly and eased himself so he was lying next to her. She turned her head and smiled gently at him. "I appreciate you changing your routine for me, Sheldon."

"Well, I would have been changing it anyway to view the meteor showers on my own; this is simply a different venue." He answered.

She grinned and laid her head on his shoulder.

Emily Scott walked up behind her husband and laid one hand on his shoulder. "So, what do you think of Sheldon?"

He turned around from where he was watching the couple from the living room. "You weren't lying: he totally is a mysophobe, and he's a little insane," Henry winked. "But she seems really happy. And he's a challenge for her."

"I think she's more a challenge for him," Emily laughed. "But he does like her, I'm sure of it."

Henry put one arm around her waist and opened the patio door. "Come on, honey."

They went outside and snuggled into the hammock next to Layla and Sheldon's. "Hey you two." Emily grinned. Layla traded smiles with her and meaningful glances toward Sheldon.

"Why are you staring at me?" he asked. Layla just giggled.

"It's sweet that you're sitting here with me, even though it was obvious it made you a little uncomfortable."

Sheldon bent his head so his lips brushed her hair. "To be perfectly honest, you smell like blueberries; the smell of shampoo and soap have a calming effect that generally overrides my mysophobia."

"Well, thank you," she giggled. "So, Emily, when is this thing going to start?"

"It's supposed to start around ten I think, so in about…" she checked her watch. "Twenty minutes."

"What are we going to do for twenty minutes?" Sheldon huffed.

"Well, you're practically dating my little sister, and I don't really know anything about you." The blonde shrugged. "Do you have any brothers and sisters?"

"Yes, I have a brother and a twin sister." Sheldon replied, feeling a little like a suspect on Law and Order.

"Neither of whom share his intellectual gifts." Layla spoke up.

"Yes, that's true." He nodded. "And I grew up in Texas."

Emily gave her sister a little smile and mouthed a word silently. Layla laughed and rolled her eyes. Sheldon gave her 'the look', and she flushed. "She- she said cowboy. When we were little, we watched John Wayne movies with mum. And when we got to be teenagers, Emily and I used to laugh about some amazing cowboy coming and sweeping us off our feet. And you're…from Texas…so Emily said you- you were a cowboy. Sorry."

"I don't think the comparison is truthful, but I'll allow the association to your childhood." He rolled his eyes at her.

"Gee thanks." Emily scoffed. Layla laughed.

"Sheldon, I was fourteen. And how do you know you couldn't be a cowboy, given the right geographical landscape and increase in upper body strength?"

"Your query is both immature and unnecessary. I have no plans to return to Texas for any extended period, and I am not going to _grow_ impressive triceps, deltoids or biceps over night."

"Good." He did a double take.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I hope you didn't mistake me for one of those girls who only go out with Neanderthals. Really Sheldon, I'd assumed you were a better judge of character than that."

He sat looking at her for a few moments, mouth opening and closing in shock. With a satisfied smirk, she lay herself out again, perfectly straight, so only their shoulders, hips and feet brushed the others. "Shouldn't be long now." She commented.

"Gregory will be asleep in bed beside his telescope," Henry sighed. "He was looking forward to this."

"It happens every year, darling." Emily soothed. "One day, when he's not ten and does not have a bedtime of nine o'clock, he can stay up to see the Lyrids."

"Sheldon!" Layla gasped, gripping his forearm. A white dot skimmed across the sky, leaving a momentary milky trail. "Oh, it's so beautiful."

Silence settled comfortably as the four watched and waited in wonder. Sheldon saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see Emily curled in her husband's arms, hands intertwined. He was kissing her hair. Looking down at Layla, he wondered if she had similar expectations for his performance at this meteor shower. Was this why she'd invited him?

"Layla, do you know of any social protocols that are to be put in place during cosmic events?" he whispered. She turned to look up at him, and he very obviously widened his eyes and tilted his head repeatedly in the other couple's direction.

"Oh! Oh, Sheldon, I don't expect anything from you in…that area. Please don't feel pressured."

He nodded in satisfaction and continued to watch for meteors in peaceful quiet.

It was nearly midnight when Layla backed her car out of the laneway. "So, not too psychologically traumatising?"

"I'll admit I did not see any source of trash or half-eaten candy laying about that I normally imagine must have to do with children. They were very clean."

"Well, we are big on baths." Layla laughed. "Really, those kids you grew up with must have been a pair of dirty old feet in rolled up overalls chasing Huck Finn down to the crick!" she put on an overly thick Texas accent.

"You may think that is an exaggeration, but I am obliged to tell you otherwise." He shuddered.

She laughed again. They continued to drive in silence until they were in front of his apartment building. "Now, Sheldon, are you aware of the three date rule?"

Sheldon shook his head. "Well, after three dates a girl has the ammunition to ask the man to kiss her. At least, that's what Emily told me when she and I were putting Izzie to bed."

"Oh." His entire body started to hum painfully, like his bloodstream had been invaded by bumblebees. "Do you intend to adhere to this stipulation?"

"If you aren't going to freak out and never call me again, yes."

"Oh." He said again. Remembering what Penny had said earlier, he bent a little and stopped within a hair's breadth from her lips. Layla smiled nervously and pressed her lips to his. They kept it chaste, capturing one another's lips slowly. After a moment, she twined her arms around his neck. Feeling this may have been a subliminal message to not just stand there, Sheldon, shaking, lightly laid on hand on her waist. She sighed, taking a miniscule step forward. Now she was almost as close as she'd been the other night in the corridor, and Sheldon's overly-large brain was spinning. He was not accustomed to not thinking, so the perfect blankness that overcame him when he kissed Layla was frightening. He pulled away, and all his errant thoughts ran home again, nearly running over his frontal lobe in their clamour to get to the forefront. "I- I think we should say goodnight." He stuttered.

"Of course; it's late." Layla's lips were pink and her chest was flushed. "Thank you again, Sheldon. I'll talk to you later?"

"Certainly." He nodded, removing his hand from her waist and entering the building, waiting until she got into her car before climbing the stairs.

Everyone was still sitting in his apartment when he got up to 4A, running back to their seats as if they were just running from the window overlooking the front door.

"Hey Sheldon," Leonard says casually. "How was it?"

"It was fine, thank you for your inquiry, Leonard." He replied. "If you'll excuse me, I'm tired; my REM cycles have been disturbed tonight already." And with a glare at the other three, Sheldon went to his room. He took off his shoes and sat on his bed, knowing there would be little sleep for him tonight.

**So, there it is! Oh, and the Lyrids usually occur in April, and in the early morning, at least where I live. So I took a little artistic license. This year it is the 22****nd****.**


	17. An Inevitable Bump in the Road

**I thought a lot about this chapter, about how I wanted it to go. Obviously after the last one, it's a fair shot that Penny and the boys were watching as Sheldon and Layla made out, so that's where I'm going to start. Enjoy, and thank you for all your lovely reviews! 50, wow!**

"What the _frak_ just happened?" Howard asked, practically falling onto the sofa. In Sheldon's spot, no less.

"I'm…so confused." Leonard polished his glasses thoughtfully. "Was that an episode of the Twilight Zone?"

Raj, of course, said nothing, just looked like his poor brain had been beaten profusely and put back in.

"Of course not, come on you guys," Penny scolded. "Layla has a crush on Sheldon, I told you this. Is it so hard to believe?"

"No…but it is hard to believe _Sheldon_ set aside his germ thing to kiss someone." Leonard replaced his glasses and shook his head. "Wow."

"Was there tongue?" Howard asked.

"No," the rest chorused. They fell silent when Sheldon opened his bedroom door. A second later, the bathroom door closed.

"Okay… so, does this mean Sheldon's going to be more… tolerable?"

"No."

The next morning, just before Leonard and Sheldon were about to go to work, there was a knock on the door.

The roommates looked at each other. "If it's Penny, then we'll have to check for porcine aviatrix." Sheldon said as he pulled his messenger bag over his shoulder.

"Flying pigs." Leonard nodded. He went to the door. Layla stood there, two coffees and a Starbucks bag in her hand.

"Good morning," she smiled, passing one of the cups to him. Leonard thanked her and let her in. "Hey Sheldon; I know you don't drink coffee, but I brought you a muffin—high fibre end of the shelf, yeah?" she winked.

"I've already had breakfast." Sheldon looked at her strangely. "Shouldn't you be at work?"

Layla raised her brows. "Uh, yeah, but I thought I'd stop by and give you your muffin, and this." She kissed his cheek. "Oh, Leonard, they forgot to put milk in my tea; do you have any?"

"Help yourself," Leonard replied, his bespectacled eyes flicking back and forth between the physicist and his girlfriend.

"Thank you," she smiled, walking into the kitchen. It was after she opened the fridge door that the bomb really dropped; she whistled.

"Strike two." Sheldon said promptly.

"Excuse me?" Layla looked at him the same way she had right after he'd insulted her father for the first time.

Leonard took this as his time to escape, and fled across the hall.

"Penny," he called as quietly as he could. "Penny, you gotta get up!"

Five minutes later, he heard rustling and swearing, then a pyjama- clad Penny was glaring at him. "What?" she growled.

"Sheldon and Layla are having a fight."

The blonde's eyes widened and then she sat against the wall in the hallway. "We're going to have to wait it out."

"How was I so unfortunate as to incur two strikes?"

"You invaded my personal space, and you _whistled_." Sheldon announced the last word as though it was a mortal sin.

"I whistled," she nodded as though trying to figure something else. Then she eyed him dangerously. "Sheldon, sit down." She said it so forcefully that he never even hesitated. She stalked over to him and began to pace, only the glass table between them. "I think I've been overly patient with you, don't you agree? I mean, Leonard lives with you and half the time you're fighting. So don't you think I've earned some capital with you?"

"Perhaps so, but the earning of 'capital', as you put it, does not entitle you to make—"

"I wasn't done." She glared, cutting off his sentence. He stopped, but looked like he was about to explode. "I, therefore, thought I could _spend_ my capital by bringing the man I'm dating a muffin and kissing his cheek. If you wanted the rules from before we kissed to apply now, then you should have said so. If you are as evolved as you say you are, perhaps you communication skills should have improved!" For a moment he thought she was done, and he opened his mouth. But she continued to rant. "And I was _whistling_ because I was happy! Do you know why I was happy, Sheldon?" Sheldon chose to believe this was a rhetorical question, and did not trust himself to open his mouth. Also, she was practically yelling now, "I was_ happy_ because you, as insanely perfect and intelligent and …annoying you are, you make me happy! I can't believe I was so stupid as to fall for someone who has _no _concept of human feelings! Never mind. Have a good day, Dr Cooper." She turned on her heel and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her.

**Author's Notes: So I'm sorry this took so long, but its course project season, and I'm writing several other things at the moment. I'll try to post again before my mummy comes up for the week end, but no promises. Reviews feed my fluff monster, Wendell, who after this chapter could really use it. Thanks!**


	18. This is what friends are for

**Hi! So, I LOVED your comments on the last chapter, they really made my day! And this one will be a tad angsty, but I promise if you stick with me, I'll make it happy again! This chapter is inspired by the Taylor Swift song 'The Way I Loved You'.**

It wasn't until after work that Sheldon spoke again. Howard, Raj and Leonard all exchanged various looks throughout dinner, and when Sheldon got up to use the restroom at the Chinese food place, Howard leaned over the table.

"Okay, what the hell is with him?"

"He and Layla had a fight this morning," Leonard explained. "I still don't know what about exactly; all I know is, she _whistled._"

"Oh my god," Raj gasped, checking over his shoulder for Sheldon. "For how long?"

"Not long. He gave her a strike. Two, actually."

"Ouch. So what's going to happen now?" Howard questioned.

"Dunno," Leonard replied. "I guess things go back to normal."

"Howard," Sheldon ordered in a controlled voice. "Stop leaning over my food."

Layla held in a sigh as her date poured her a glass of wine. She was going to need it. Her mother, once again, had set her up with a 'date'. Thankfully he wasn't ancient this time; Nathan was about forty, with greying temples and a nice suit. He was single, which was a great step up from a few of the dates she'd had at her mother's insistence.

Nathan smiled at her over the tasteful candlelight. "So, Miss Nicholas, your mother told me you teach at the University of Los Angeles Pasadena?"

"Yes," Layla nodded, offering a polite smile. "I teach Civil War history, the Napoleonic Wars, and the History of the Cromwell Administration."

"Wow, you have quite the range of expertise." He smiled.

"I suppose," she laughed quietly. "What do you do?"

"I'm an administrator at a small private clinic." He replied. "Nothing terribly exciting."

Layla had to fight the urge to roll her eyes. This guy was _boring._ He didn't have anything to distinguish him from any other man. For absolutely no reason, she found herself contemplating a spot on a brown leather sofa, and realized that tonight was Tuesday, and Tuesday was Cheesecake Factory night, much to Penny's chagrin, when Sheldon made a scene. It scared her how much she'd already learned about Sheldon. His weekly schedule, his scientific beliefs; add to that that according to Penny, his family was just as insane as hers, she sort of felt like a kindred spirit.

Layla mentally shook herself and turned her mind back to the conversation. Boring Nathan was telling her about how he got involved with her father's doctors in treating his ALS. She knew his case off by heart, so fortunately she hadn't missed much while her thoughts wandered. She spent the rest of the evening in autopilot, even allowing her 'date' to walk her home, something she never did.

As they approached her apartment building, Layla saw someone familiar pacing in the lobby.

"Howard?" she asked in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"

"I needed to talk to you… about Sheldon." The engineer eyed Nathan. "And you're dating."

"Howard Wolowitz, meet Nathan Petrovsky, a friend of my parents'." She introduced them. "I'm sorry Nathan, but this is important. I had a nice evening."

"The pleasure was all mine," he nodded, looking vaguely disgruntled about not being able to walk her to her front door. He nodded once to Howard and left.

"What's wrong? And… how did you find out where I lived?" Layla wasn't sure she liked the idea of Howard Wolowitz knowing where her house was.

"Sheldon's gone all mute." He sighed. "And I bullied Penny into telling me where your place was. Sorry." He didn't look at all apologetic.

"Well, I'm sorry about Sheldon, but what do you want me to do? He didn't want me, much to my embarrassment."

"Come on, this is Sheldon; even if he did want you, he'd never say anything," Howard argued. "And he hasn't said anything, well, hardly anything, since you left on Monday morning."

"Nothing?" she asked, getting a little worried. "I don't know that seeing me would do him any good. It might just freak him out enough to push him all the way to the deep dark corner of that little shell of his." Layla sighed and shifted her clutch from one hand to the other. "When he decides he wants to see me, tell him he has my number."

Even though it nearly killed her, she climbed the stairs and turned her back on Howard.

Howard texted Penny that night:

Layla's a no go. Move on to plan B.

Penny sighed. She figured Layla wouldn't want to see Sheldon so soon after a fight, but plan B sounded a little extreme to her. Steeling herself, she dialled the number Leonard had given her months and months before. It rang, and finally a female voice said, "Hello?" on the other line.

"Mrs Cooper, its Penny. I'm sorry to bother you, but we have a little problem."

"Mother?" Sheldon squawked when he saw Mary Cooper at his front door. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard you had a little problem with a girl, so I thought I'd come and see my baby through his first lady crisis." Mary replied. "Now, are you going to help your Mama in with her bags?"

"I don't need help," Sheldon said helplessly.

"Yes he does!" Leonard called from the kitchen. "That's the most he's spoken in four days."

"Hi there, Leonard," Mrs Cooper smiled.

"Hello, Mrs Cooper, I'm glad you're here."

"Mother, I am not having any sort of trouble with a female."

"And who is this Layla?" Mrs Cooper asked, one brow raised.

"She is a friend who works at UCLA."

"Who was in LOVE with him, and she broke up with Sheldon after he gave her two strikes." Leonard supplied helpfully.

"I don't see how you can know all that," Sheldon groused.

"Uh, Sheldon, she was yelling at you pretty loudly. Penny and I could hear her across the hall."

"Oh Penny! I promised we'd have a nice chat when I got here. I'll be back in a little while, boys."

"Oh, Mrs Cooper! You made good time." Penny smiled, stepping back to let Sheldon's mother inside.

"Yes, I caught the earliest flight I could." Mary smiled, giving the blonde a gentle hug.

"Mrs Cooper, I think your son might be in love." Penny said, gesturing for her to sit. "Her name is Layla."

"Yes, you told me on the phone, darling. How did my son screw it up this time?"

"He gave her strikes after they kissed for the first time." Penny replied, embarrassed for her socially inept friend.

"My Shelly kissed a girl?" Mary cried. "Praise Jesus! When can I meet her?"

"Well, she's kind of mad at him. Howard went to talk to her last night, and she's sort of…given up."

"Tell me Penny, does this girl take her time with him?"

"I guess," the blonde shrugged. "She fights with him about Star Trek, but she doesn't expect anything from him. I think she just made the mistake of assuming that once she took one step with Sheldon, that one step was set in stone."

"Oh, not with Sheldon it's not," Mary sighed. "The boy goes one step forward and a mile back."

"Well, that's why I called you; I was hoping you could talk some sense into both of them."

First thing the next morning, Mary Cooper was on Layla Nicholas' doorstep. When the brunette answered, she stuck out her hand.

"I'm Mary Cooper," she said. "You're in love with my son."

"O-oh." Layla looked a little shocked. She shook Mrs Cooper's hand.

Mary took the tall, willowy girl in from head to toe; long brown hair, light blue eyes, wearing a pair of grey slacks and a cranberry coloured tee shirt.

"Well, you're a pretty little thing, aren't ya?" the Texan woman asked. Layla blushed a little.

"Uh, thank you. Mrs Cooper, it isn't that I'm not pleased to meet you, but why are you here?"

"Penny called me after you and Sheldon had your little spat. Sometimes he needs his mama to shove him in the right direction."

"I see," Layla let the other woman in. She sat shakily down on her sofa. "And you believe I'm the right direction?"

"Honey, I know all about your little courtship with Shelly, and I know you care about him. And it's been what? Three days since you last saw him?"

"Yes ma'am." She nodded, looking away.

"His father used to say, 'Mary, you have to take your time with Sheldon.'"

"And you think if I give him time, he might make room for me in his carefully planned schedule? Mrs Cooper, I know you know Sheldon better than that. He doesn't do anything he doesn't want to."

"Layla, did you take my son somewhere to eat he'd never been before?" Mary inquired.

"Well, yes; we went to my sister's, and then we watched the meteor shower all together in the back yard."

"Uh huh. And did you allow him within fifty feet of children?"

"Actually, my nephew took quite a shine to him." Layla smiled.

"Darlin', I think he's already made the time, he just can't figure out why he's doing it yet. That is where I come in."

Layla, Mary, and Penny all sat in the boys' apartment that afternoon, waiting for them to get home. Mary and Penny sat well away from Sheldon's spot, allowing him one familiarity in what was sure to be a conversation full of changes; Layla paced, from the armchair to the refrigerator and back, fidgeting.

Finally, keys jingled out in the hall and Sheldon and Leonard entered, bickering about something to do with quartiles. Leonard stopped arguing first, taking in the wall of seething oestrogen that had unexpectedly filled his home. It took Sheldon a little longer, as it always did, to notice anything was off.

"Penny, what are you doing here?" he asked accusingly, before seeing Layla and completely ignoring his neighbour. "Layla."

"Hi Sheldon." She smiled nervously. There was an awkward pause, where Mary nodded encouragingly at the woman near the kitchen. "Uh, I was hoping we could go for a walk."

"It's going to rain," he observed, looking to the grey sky outside.

"No, it's just overcast," she assured him. "So, walk?"

"Certainly," he replied stiffly, holding the door open for her. It was clear he was angry at Penny for calling his mother, and at his mother for seeking out Layla, but he knew better than to incur the wrath of either by handing out dirty looks. So he simply turned his back on them and left.

Layla gathered her black sweater around her when they got outside; the wind was picking up, but nevertheless she set a course for their walk, figuring around the block would be the safest to start.

"I want to apologize for yelling at you," she began quietly, watching the zipper on his jacket, too afraid to meet his eyes. "I was just… frustrated. And I promised I would let you be yourself, and I'm sorry I broke that promise."

"That seems perfectly acceptable for an apology," Sheldon replied. "May we return back to the apartment now? I think it will rain."

"Not yet," she shook her head. "Sheldon, did you like kissing me?"

"I don't see what that has to do with anything," he said in mild surprise. "That was a conventional way to end a date, correct?"

"Well, yes, but you didn't have to do it," she argued. "But you did. So did you like it?"

"I found the rise in heart beat and respiration to be rather exhilarating." He allowed.

"Well, I enjoyed kissing you. But when I came in the next morning, I didn't even try to kiss you on the mouth; I figured just a quick peck on the cheek would be more than acceptable since you allowed me in your space bubble the night before. I don't think I assumed anything untoward, do you?"

"Well, you did not give me proper notice of an incoming show of physical affection," Sheldon sighed in frustration. "I would have to be on guard all the time, just in case. Now can we go back? I think I felt a raindrop."

"No!" Layla sighed. "You want me to warn you when I'm going to touch your hand, or kiss you, or enter your personal space in any way? That simply isn't practical, Sheldon! What if it's by accident? Do I have to spend twenty minutes calming you down because you weren't expecting it? Why can't you—"

She broke off as the sky opened up; fat. Cold raindrops began to fall, steadily dampening Layla's hair. Sheldon glared. "Why can't you just give me the right to public and personal displays of affection, as long as it isn't inappropriate? Sometimes, Sheldon, you are the sweetest man alive, and I just—"

She stood on her tiptoes and pulled him down to her, kissing him without the gentle exploration of their previous embrace. Her sweater fell open in the rain, getting the bodice of her dress wet and making goosebumps appear on her skin. But she didn't care about the cold. After a moment she pulled back. "I want to do that. Only I'd like you to want it enough to kiss me back. If you're ready, you have my number."

Then she walked back the way they'd come, got into her car and drove away.


	19. Threats of Black Holes

**Author's Note: Thank you so much for all the reviews! I've never had so many on one story. I've also made some changes to Chapter 18 and 16 I think, and I've put breaks in. I can't believe I've been posting here for two years and I didn't know the postings didn't show my own little '**' breaks. **

**I've been a little scared to post a new chapter for fear of messing this up, but I think I finally got it.**

Sheldon returned to his apartment soaking wet and in a worse mood than before. His mother immediately stood and made for him, asking in her sweet Texan drawl if he was alright and calling him 'snickerdoodle'. But Sheldon wasn't in the mood. He sidestepped all three of them and went to the bathroom, intent on taking a hot shower to counteract the threat of pneumonia.

"What the hell did she do?" Penny growled, hitting Layla's number in her speed dial. It rang for a moment, then her friend's guarded voice came on the line.

"Hi Penny."

"What's going on?" the blonde shrieked into the phone. Layla pulled her car over just shy of her apartment complex. She sighed.

"Sheldon hates rain, Pen, you know that; he is obsessive about the possibility of pneumonia. So I finished our conversation and went home to change. I trust he found his way back safely?"

"Yeah, but what did you say to him?"

"Hey, I was just explaining to him why I got so upset with him. And then… I may have kissed him again."

"Seriously? After the strikes and everything?" Penny heaved a great sigh.

"I've always wanted to kiss someone I loved in the rain," Layla explained, sounding a little pleased. "I enjoyed it. You'll no doubt be surprised, but Sheldon is no slacker in the kissing department."

"Hmm… I never would have guessed." The blonde replied thoughtfully.

"Yeah I know. Should I… I'm going to change my clothes. Should I come back over?"

Mary stole the phone from Penny and pressed it to her ear. "Listen to me honey; if you care at all about my boy, you'll come back here and face him. He's brilliant, but he's a bit of a coward. He'll never… You know what, Layla? Change your clothes, take a bath, get yourself warmed up. I'll light a fire under Sheldon's bee-hind."

"Um… okay. Thank you, Mrs Cooper." She answered, saying goodbye. They hung up, and Layla put her car in drive. A few moments later, she was stepping out of her little black flats and stripping off her wet clothes in a trail on her way to the bathroom; purple cardigan, black sundress, matching delicates. Then she was in her warmest terrycloth robe filling her tub. She really needed a bath, and then a nice cup of tea.

"Shelly? Shelly, can I come in?" Mary called. She'd given her son a good fifteen minutes from the time he left his bathroom to the time she decided to go and hassle him again. She got no answer, but pushed the bedroom door open nonetheless.

"Mom, I didn't say you could come in." Sheldon was lying on his stomach on the bed, his chin propped on his folded arms.

"I wanted to know what you were thinking after your conversation with your lady friend."

"She's not my lady friend, Mom."

"Shelly," she said sternly. "When you were four years old, one of Missy's little friends took a shine to ya. Do you remember?"

"Donna Temple. She was blonde." Sheldon replied condescendingly.

"That's right. Now, she tried to plant one on you one afternoon, and you retaliated by explaining how easy it would be to launch a projectile just her size into space." Sheldon looked up and smiled at his own creativity. "I sent her home ten minutes later, cryin, to her mama. Missy and Donna never played together at our house again."

Sheldon sat up and looked at his mother, unimpressed. "What are you talking about, Mom?"

"Layla isn't some girl I get to console with cookies and send home. And she's far too smart to let you scare her away with threats about black holes. Now, that is a rare woman, rarer even since you're as neurotic as a horse at a glue factory." She touched his cheek. "You gotta decide whether you want to let her go and lose someone you of all people can actually stand to be with, or if you want to keep your same old life and end up alone. I'm not going to be around forever, ya know, and neither is your Meemaw." He looked at her in fear. "Oh, don't worry, sweetie, Meemaw's fine—I just don't want you to be alone. One day Leonard will go off and get married, and even Howard could find a nice girl and maybe settle down. And you'll be here in this apartment, playing Halo on Wednesdays all by yourself. But it doesn't have to be like that."

"I have a schedule that is specifically designed to produce optimal REM cycles, academic breakthroughs, and to meet my nutritional needs, Mom. Another person would completely offset the balance of my life." Sheldon answered stiffly.

"Maybe," Mary allowed. "Or it could give you a much- needed change of pace. Now, she's at home getting warmed up, and I told her to take her time. I want you to go over there and convince her you are able to behave like the gentleman I raised you to be. Are we clear?"

Sighing, the drawl in Sheldon's voice became more pronounced as he growled, "Yes, Mama."

Layla was just putting on fresh jeans and a white long sleeved shirt when there came the familiar knock on her door. Her heartbeat sped up to coincide with the staccato beat of his fist on her front door. Quickly, she checked her reflection; no makeup, not the worst thing in the world, and her damp hair was up in a wavy ponytail. All things considered, it could've been worse.

She was literally steps from her door when she realized all her clothes from before her bath were still all over the floor. "Shit!" she gasped, bending and gathering all the garments. "One minute!" she called through the door. Layla bolted to her laundry hamper and back, calming herself before opening the door. "Sheldon!" she said happily, smiling more cheerfully than she felt.

"Hello Layla." The lanky physicist nodded.

"Uh, would you like to come in?" she asked timidly, blushing when he nodded the affirmative. He walked down the hall into her small living room and stood uncomfortably by the end of the sofa. Dahlia looked up with bored eyes at the visitor, then went back to her nap. "Well, I'd offer you a glass of wine, but I don't think that would win me any points right now." She laughed nervously.

"I don't drink," he said, out of habit more than anything else. "And I will be the first to admit I don't interact well with others."

"Is that your round-about apology for being obtuse?" she asked.

"I suppose so. My mother made me realize that we are both adults, and that it seems far more logical for me to pursue a relationship with someone else, seeing as my living situation with Leonard may not be entirely permanent."

"What do you mean?"

Sheldon then told her the story of Donna Temple and his sister Missy, shifting from foot to foot. When he'd finished, Layla sat down on the edge of the sofa and looked up at him. "So you're saying you were trying to push me away like you did Donna Temple?"

"Precisely. My mother assures me you cannot be taken care of the same way."

"Thank you?" Layla wrinkled her brow. "I'm confused. You're saying that since your mother doesn't want you to be alone if and when Leonard gets married and moves out, you're willing to _allow_ me to date you. That really doesn't do it for me, Sheldon."

"I don't see why not," he replied brusquely. "We both get what we want."

"No, I get what I want, and you get to go on doing everything the same. I don't want you to simply allow my presence in your life; you have to want me there, or else I'll always feel like an outsider. Right now, your mother and I have a closer relationship than me and you."

"You and I," Sheldon corrected automatically. "And I thought you may question my emotional attachment in the matter, so I brought you something." He fished a thin composition notebook out of his messenger bag.

Layla took it from his outstretched hand and opened the front cover. The first page was simply a title page, with two letters written on it in Sheldon's neat script: **L.N.**

The next page was a sort of hypothesis page, where Sheldon had written a statement of intent. She skimmed it, her brain picking out phrases like _physiological symptoms _and _physical proximity_. She'd began to fill in the pieces when she turned the page and encountered a list of 'symptoms' listed under the heading **TEST SUBJECT: S.C.**Increased heartbeat, chest constrictions, sweaty palms… and on the pages after were schedules of every time he'd felt each condition, organized by date, category and place. It took a few seconds before Layla realized this was Sheldon Cooper's version of a love note.

"Oh," she sighed, thinking this was possibly the sweetest thing she'd ever seen. "I see." Layla stood. "Now, I don't believe in this warning-you-before-personal-displays-of-affection-thing, but I'm telling you, I'm going to hug you now." She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed. Sheldon, naturally, tensed up, but when it was clear his body language wasn't going to deter her, he awkwardly wrapped his gangly arms around her back. Layla smiled over his shoulder, closing her eyes. "Thank you." She whispered. "I've never had anyone do something so unique."

"The study was more for my own reassurance," he answered. "But after the talk I had with Penny about…_romance_…" she giggled at his shudder. "I thought perhaps my notes could be more articulate than I could."

"It was wonderful." Layla pecked his cheek. "And to tell you the truth, Sheldon? I like you for who you are, and you are definitely not the average man. I'm not a big fan of conventional romance, either."


	20. Bring Out Your Godiness

"Shelly, you and I need to have a little talk," Mary Cooper said to her son Saturday afternoon. He was contemplating a very full whiteboard, and just mumbled something to the affirmative.

Layla looked over her book at Sheldon's mother; she didn't look angry, thank goodness; she had no doubt that Mrs Cooper would voice her unhappiness in the same vocal fashion as her son. The professor swatted her 'boyfriend' with her paperback. He jumped and glared at her.

"What?" he asked huffily.

"Your mother is speaking to you." Layla replied promptly, turning back around in the armchair.

"Shelly, we need to discuss tomorrow." Mrs Cooper said sternly.

"Tomorrow?" Sheldon asked distractedly, his eyes flicking between his equations and his mother.

"Yes, Sunday," Mary Cooper said, rolling her eyes. "I want you to go to church with me tomorrow."

"Mother," Sheldon sighed unhappily. "I don't want to go to church with you. You are more than aware of my own beliefs, although I don't mind saying grace at thanksgiving, but I don't appreciate church being forced on me."

"I don't much care, Sheldon," she replied sharply. "Do you think I'm going to let this miracle—" she gestured between him and Layla, "go by without thankin' our lord Jesus for it?"

"Oh, Mom," he groaned again.

"Tell you what Sheldon," Layla smiled at him over her book. "I'll go if you go. It's been a long time since I've observed a church service; I like the historical pathways it sends my brain down sometimes. Come on, we'll go to church," she rolled her eyes so only he could see, "and then I'll take the two of you for breakfast. Now that you mother's here, it's only fair she gets to embarrass you the way mine embarrassed me."

Sheldon sighed and looked from one brunette to the other. They were both eyeing him with the look he knew well; they'd compromised perfectly, and he wouldn't be able to say no without possibly breaking his mother's heart. Not to mention maybe making Layla yell at him again. It wasn't a pleasant experience the first time.

"Oh, very well." He growled in frustration. "But I get to choose the restaurant."

"Is there ever a situation where you don't?" Leonard chuckled from his desk.

Mary waited until both boys went back to their work and then bent next to Layla's ear. "I lit a fire under him, honey, but you have to help him along; wear yellow tomorrow; his Meemaw bought him a tie when he was graduating the first time. He favours yellow."

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

At nine o'clock the next morning, Layla walked up the stairs to the fourth floor, her stomach flopping uncomfortably. She was nervous about going to church with Mrs Cooper; she obviously took her religion very seriously, and she feared her and Sheldon's atheistic tendencies would get them in trouble, but it was too late to go back on her promise now. Layla took a deep, calming breath and knocked on the door.

"Good Morning, darlin'!" Mrs Cooper said happily, smiling and letting her in. Mary was wearing a dark red dress that went down to mid-calf, matched with a black cardigan and shoes. "Why, don't you look lovely!"

"Thank you," Layla blushed, taking off her jacket, folding it, and laying it on the back of the sofa.

"You know honey, why don't you see if Shelly needs some help with his tie?" Sheldon's mother ushered her toward his bedroom. Once Layla had stepped up into the hallway, Mary let a tiny smile grace her face. This girl was going to drive her little boy into happiness kicking and screaming, and if she wasn't mistaken, the fight was about to get a little easier.

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

Sheldon tucked his dress shirt into his trousers and straightened his cuffs. He hadn't slept well the night before, and it showed in the slightly red rims of his eyes.

He'd had the most disturbing dream; usually he enjoyed dreaming, as most of his involved him getting super powers. But this one was different. He'd been in his office, looking at an equation not unlike the Born- Oppenheimer Approximation, when Layla came in. She didn't look any different than normal, but for some reason his breath hitched when he saw her, and his stomach dropped uncomfortably. It was like the evening they attended her parents' party and he saw her in a dress for the first time.

Layla had smiled and walked up beside him, kissing his cheek. She smelled like she usually did: flowery shampoo and the tangy smell of soap. He was shocked to realize he associated a smell with her; normally he never recognized things like that. Suddenly, she was reciting Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and he heard his mother's voice in his head, _Shelly, do you think I'm going to let this miracle go by? ...This girl can't be scared away with threats of black holes…_

And then he'd woken up, his breathing erratic and his hands clutching the sheets beneath them. Sheldon couldn't decipher the dream entirely, which annoyed him, but he also had one of those 'gut' feelings he so often debunked that this dream meant something.

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

"Sheldon?" Layla called softly, knocking on his bedroom door. After a moment, the door opened up a crack and one of Sheldon's eyes peeked out.

"Good Morning." He blinked at her.

"Hi," Layla chuckled. "You mother sent me to make sure you didn't need help with your tie."

"People can't be in my bedroom," he disagreed.

"Then… just open the door and I'll stand in the threshold." She compromised. He was silent for a good minute. "Sheldon," she put on hand on the door as though she was actually going to touch him through it, "Don't you know me well enough to realize I keep my word when it comes to you?"

"Okay," Sheldon replied in a voice that sounded much like a whine. He let the door slide open on its hinges and went back to get his shoes. True to her word, Layla didn't move.

Actually, Layla was staring, no, drooling, over the sight of Sheldon in a suit. She'd always thought him cute, tall and gangly but with a certain kind of gentleman like grace, but now, with his long legs and lean body encased in a black suit, she was utterly speechless. He wore a white shirt and there was a light blue tie hanging around his neck. She smiled when he turned to sit on his bed and slip his feet into his shoes. Once he was done, Sheldon looked up and his blue eyes froze.

Layla was wearing a light yellow dress with thin straps tied into bows on her pale shoulders. As it had when he saw her in Penny's dress, his heartbeat sped up until he was sure he was in cardiac distress. She was still standing in the doorway as promised, and when he didn't stop staring, she brushed a strand of curled hair behind her ear and shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"What?" she asked.

"You look… you look very nice." He said shyly, unused to bestowing compliments.

"Thank you." She blushed. "So do you. Would-uh, would you like me to do your tie for you?"

"That would be acceptable."

"I think you'll have to come here, unless you're willing to let me in."

Sheldon, although he thought she was beautiful and his breathing was becoming shallow as he stood, still had standards, so he went to the threshold. Layla reached up and tucked the tie beneath his collar.

"Wait," he said, stepping away and going to his closet. After a few seconds of rummaging, he pulled out a yellow tie that almost matched her dress. He pulled it around his neck and returned to his position before her. She smiled radiantly at him as she began to knot his tie. Her fingers brushed his chest and he inhaled sharply at the unexpected contact. He smelled her perfume, something he'd never noticed on her before.

She glanced up quickly. "Everything alright?"

Instead of answering directly, he said, "You smell different."

Layla smiled softly. "Yes, I hardly ever wear perfume, but I thought it was an appropriate occasion." She watched him for a brief minute. "You don't like it."

"I am having a difficult time placing the scent. Any inability to solve a problem frustrates me."

"I know; it's oleander." She softly tugged the knot in his tie upwards and straightened it, laying one hand softly against his chest to flatten the silk. They were both silent, and finally Layla looked up and met his eyes.

"Would you mind if I took a liberty in the name of observational research?"

"Um…no, I suppose not." Layla replied quietly. He took a step closer and her higher cognitive function ceased. He was a little less than a head taller than her, so he bent his neck and moved his cheek closer to hers. He didn't kiss her, which almost increased her sense of anticipation. Sheldon simply held his place, closer than he'd ever allowed himself to get to her save their previous brief embraces. She exhaled quietly, turning her head ever so slightly so her nose brushed his cheek.

"Layla," he said quietly. "Though it is going to seem strange to say so, I had a very disturbing dream last night—"

"Shelly? Are you and Layla ready yet?" Mrs Cooper called from down the hall. The two jumped out of their trance, and Layla took a small step back so she was leaning on the door frame.

"Your dream?" she asked quietly.

"I'll refrain from telling you until after breakfast," he replied. "We should go."

Mary smiled as she watched her son and his lady friend walk toward her. They weren't intentionally touching, but the way Sheldon's arm sometimes brushed against hers as he walked a step behind her spoke volumes. For Sheldon, that was an enormous leap forward. He helped her on with her jacket, and Layla smiled her thanks, their eyes meeting ever so slightly.

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

When they got to the large Christian church, Layla began to worry. It really had been a long time since she'd been to church; after her family stopped going when she was about ten, the only other time she'd gone to Sunday service was with the family of one of her friends in college. They were staying for the weekend, and Layla had been warned in advance to pack something nice. Now she wondered if she'd even remember the Lord's prayer.

Mrs Cooper took the arm her son offered, then turned to her. Sheldon offered her his other elbow, which she took after a small hesitation. He was letting her touch him? Given, it wasn't skin on skin, but still. Maybe Mrs Cooper had lit a fire under Sheldon after all. At this point, it seemed more likely she'd lit a blaze.

The church was a large one, with massive concrete steps leading up to a vault- ceilinged sanctuary. Mary led them over to a pew five from the front, and they sat at the very end. Sheldon was seated between his mother and Layla, and she was glad; this way, if she didn't remember everything, Mrs Cooper wouldn't hear her.

"This church is lovely," she whispered to Sheldon. "Are you familiar with the architecture used in cathedrals?"

"Only in a passing respect," he replied as the minister approached the pulpit. "I received a few lectures when I went to Germany as a child."

"You went to Germany?"

"When I was fifteen, I was a visiting professor at the Heidelberg. I went to a few lectures to familiarize myself with the culture."

"You know Sheldon, it seems like just when I think I know something about you, you say something else to change my mind. It's nice that someone is able to keep me on my toes."

Sheldon looked at her in surprise. She was smirking at him, a faint blush on her cheeks and collarbone.

"Do you mind if I educate you for once? I'll focus on the bloodier, war-like aspects of the church's history." Layla enticed. Narrowing his eyes and appraising her, he finally nodded.

Between hymns, (which Layla sang quietly, since she really was as bad as Penny), Sheldon found himself being quietly lectured on the finer points of the Knights Templar, and the church's appropriation of pagan customs.

The Cheesecake Factory was humming with conversation from several tables as a waitress led them in. It wasn't loud, thank goodness, and the wait staff knew Sheldon well enough that no one tried to seat them at an unapproved table.

Layla and his mother were already talking animatedly about kindergarten, something Mary had experienced with Missy and George, and that Layla had endured first-hand.

"Oh, it was horrible," Layla laughed. "There was this game where all the girls would choose a boy and then chase him in one long line, waiting for him to get tired so they could kiss him." She looked at Sheldon and smiled. "I'm glad you didn't go to kindergarten, sweetie; it would have scarred you for life."

Sheldon felt his pulse increase the tiniest bit when she called him 'sweetie'; it wasn't like when Penny did it, since she called all of them that as a term of endearment. But when Layla, who hardly had any kind of nickname for anyone, called him 'sweetie', it was sort of like… she meant it? He was very confused.

As they ate breakfast and talked about Sheldon's various experiments as a child and Layla's history of growing up with a certified genius, he realized that he might actually like the girl sitting next to him. He had kept her around after they'd first met because she intrigued him; and he'd be lying if he said it wasn't because he wanted to meet Enoch Nicholas. But now, with her smiling and conversing easily with his mother, and her forearm briefly catching his as she leaned on the table in interest, Sheldon thought maybe he really like _her._

**Author's Notes: Okay, so this was a sort of Sheldon 'testing the waters' chapter, and I had always intended that Mrs Cooper, bless her heart, would come riding in on some big ass Texan bull and drag Sheldon in the right direction. We all know he listens to his Mum, so I thought maybe advice coming from her would be taken more into consideration than that given by Penny or Leonard. **

** Originally, this was going to be over by chapter 20, but I don't think it feels finished. Besides, Sheldon needs to initiate at least **_**one **_**kiss in this fic! What a wuss :P**


	21. Fulfilling the Hierarchy

**Okay, everybody, if my plan goes the way it should, this should be wrapped up by chapter 25. I feel obliged at this point to tell you I don't own the lyrics to "Layla" by Eric Clapton/ Derek and the Dominoes. I know that's hard to believe, given my massive personal fortune. XD**

All the boys and Penny were in Sheldon and Leonard's apartment when they got back from church and breakfast.

"Layla," Howard crooned, swaggering toward her, Nintendo belt buckle leading the way. "You got me on my knees, Layla, I'm begging darling please."

"Howard, as impressed as I am that you know that song, you are not the first person to make the Eric Clapton reference."

"What reference?" Sheldon asked.

"There's a song from the seventies called Layla, and it's the one I'm named after. It was by Eric Clapton." Layla replied.

"That's so cool," Penny sighed. "I don't think I'm named after anything."

"All my sisters are named after songs," she explained, blushing. "Emily's named after the song 'See Emily Play' and Diana after the song 'Diana' by Bryan Adams."

"I have not heard any of those songs." Sheldon replied matter-of-factly.

"I'll educate you later." She smiled, patting his arm.

"Now Layla, would you like to help Penny and I cook a real Cooper dinner?" Mary asked.

"I'd love that." Layla smiled. "Sheldon do you have an apron? I don't want to get my dress dirty."

"Certainly," He replied, going to a drawer and producing a long white apron. She put the string around her neck and Sheldon tied the back strings for her, letting his fingers brush her back just barely.

Across the room, Leonard turned to Penny. "Did that just happen?"

"You mean, did Sheldon just initiate contact with another human being and didn't try to disinfect himself before or after?" Penny asked. "Yeah, _that _just happened."

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

At the same time the next day, it was just Sheldon and Layla in the apartment; they had dropped Mrs Cooper off at the airport early that morning, Raj and Howard had gone home, Leonard was sleeping, and Penny had gone home early, having to work a breakfast shift the next day.

"Would you like to hear the song I was named after?" Layla winked. "I promised to educate you."

"I suppose so," Sheldon shrugged amicably, muting the end credits of Jeopardy. He'd challenged her to a game show competition, which he'd won, naturally. Layla fetched her iPod and flicked around on the dial. Then she placed the device on their docking station and pressed play.

_What'll you do when you get lonely  
And nobody's waiting by your side?  
You've been running and hiding much too long.  
You know it's just your foolish pride._

Sheldon listened silently to the next verse for a minute, then looked up at her. "Your parents named you after _this _song?"

"Yeah, seems a little unorthodox, I know, but my mother is a huge Eric Clapton fan. They named Emily after a Pink Floyd song, and 'Diana' by Bryan Adams is about Diana, Princess of Wales." She regarded him for a minute silently, and then stood up. "Would you like me to teach you to dance?"

"No, absolutely not. I don't dance."

"Maybe you don't because you can't. Yet. I'm going to teach you."

"No, no, Layla," Sheldon whined, allowing her to pull him up with both hands. She took a step closer to him, so they were standing the way they were before church the day before. "I don't like participating in activities I am not proficient in."

"Sheldon, have you ever danced with a girl before?" she asked, exasperated. When he shook his head 'no', she smiled. "Then you can't know if you're proficient, can you? Come on, it's easy. Just step a little closer, and… Sheldon, don't look so tense!" she laughed at his stressed face. "Dancing is supposed to be fun. Think of it like… like a derivative plane. We have to operate on parallel lines. Now, put your hand on my waist," she instructed patiently. Now we're going to move. No one expects you to be perfect besides you, sweetie, just relax."

She was standing almost up against him now, whispering in his ear. Sheldon took her hand in his and they just moved slowly in a circle. Layla pulled away and took both his hands again, showing him how to spin her and teaching him how to lead, teaching in a quiet, patient voice. When 'Layla' was over, 'See Emily Play' began, and she stepped closer again, daring to actually let their bodies touch for more than a second. He didn't balk, and she didn't push her luck.

"You know, you never told me what your troubling dream was," she said.

Of course, Sheldon was nothing if not a fast learner, so it shouldn't have come as a surprise when he spun her round and pulled her back against his body. But she was surprised, and uttered a little laugh and an 'oh'. It was fun, even Sheldon couldn't deny that. Of course, Layla had set it up so 'Diana' was on next, which was undoubtedly more upbeat. Layla sped up the pace of their footfalls, and taught him to spin her into his body, so her back was pressed against his front.

"Would you like me to tell you?" Sheldon asked.

"Of course, if you'd like to," Layla smiled.

"You were in it."

"Really?"

"You were reciting the Maslow's hierarchy of needs to me."

"Seriously?" Layla raised a brow. "Have you been able to decipher what that means?"

"No, I was hoping you'd have some insight." Sheldon replied.

"Okay, well, Maslow's Hierarchy is a chart showing humans' basic needs that need to be fulfilled before the others can be attained. Would you like to look it up?"

"Yes, I would like to." He replied, dropping her hand.

They went to Sheldon's computer, and Layla typed their search into Google images.

"So, obviously, the first one can be crossed off the list, since you've attained everything, except sex. Or so I'm assuming." She looked at him severely.

"… No, I am not having coitus with someone else." He replied, shrinking a little away from her look.

"Good." She nodded. "And you've accomplished all of the safety stage. Same with esteem; according to Leonard you could stand to lose a few points in that category," she winked at him. "And I suppose you have some of the self-actualization stage, except the fact that you are not free of prejudice."

"I am so!" he disagreed. "I simply have standards."

"Right, whatever." She smiled, shaking her head. "But have a look at the yellow block on the pyramid."

Sheldon bent over Layla's shoulder to read. "Friendship, family, sexual intimacy. I have friends. And a family. Simply not sexual intimacy."

"Your friends are lovely, but they do delight a little in pushing your buttons. And you have a very religious family that you don't exactly see eye to eye with. However, you could reach the next step in the third one if you kissed me right now."

Sheldon looked down at her in surprise. "I beg your pardon?"

"Remember when I told you that I wouldn't date anyone with affection that only went one way?" he nodded. "Well, then, I can't be the one to force you into physical affection. And I'd like you to kiss me. Please."

Finally, Sheldon bent down, and pressed his lips to hers. He had intended it to be a quick peck, to oblige her, but then his senses were assaulted with her flowery scent and she wrapped her fingers around the wrist of the hand that was suspending him above her. She didn't touch him anywhere else, yet for some reason he was unable to pull away.

In a way, that was how his relationship with Layla was; he tried desperately to pull back into his safe, predictable life, but she continued to lure him out in ways that he couldn't always decipher. What his mother had said really had lodged in his brain.

When they pulled away for air, she smiled at him breathlessly. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He replied. They stared at each other a moment, then, mutually, they leaned back in and kissed again. Layla stood up so Sheldon wasn't bent over her. She rested one hand on his chest, just over his heart. They continued until an uncomfortable 'ahem' pulled them from their embrace.

Leonard was in the hallway in his bathrobe, his glasses uneven on his nose. "Um. Sorry for interrupting."

"That's alright," Layla blushed. "I should get going anyway. Goodnight Sheldon," she said, hurriedly grabbing her bag and fleeing the apartment.

There was a tense silence after the door closed behind her. Sheldon was looking pink around the ears, and finally said, "Good night Leonard."

His roommate was staring slack jawed in shock. Just before Sheldon shut his bedroom door, he called, "You have lipstick on your mouth!"


	22. Downey, Curtis and Simmons

**Author's Notes: Greetings! I am appearing as an oracle before the fanfic to tell you there may be only 1-2 more chapters of the History Paradox. I have been listening to a lot of Peggy Lee lately—so how do you feel about a lounge singer OC? Done tastefully obviously. And also I just saw Burlesque, and I'm DYING to do something more than sing Christina Aguilera in the shower. Wow, too much information? Ignore me, I have 2 exams tomorrow and I pulled an all night-er. **

That week, on 'Anything Can Happen Thursday', Layla got a text message from Sheldon.

**I am texting to inquire whether you would like to have dinner at your apartment. The others are playing Grand Theft Auto and Penny is going out.**

Layla smiled and flipped her phone up to reveal the keyboard.

**I would love to have dinner at my place—you don't like GTA?**

**No, **came his reply, **although the graphics are vastly superior I fail to see any merit to a game where one earns points by stealing cars and propositioning prostitutes.**

That made her laugh out loud. She shook her head and texted back. **I'm sensing a comment about Homo Novi coming on… I'll pick you up at 7 and you can choose takeout?**

**I am an intellectually superior human being. And yes, that sounds satisfactory.**

**Good, I'll see you then. Xo**

The second she sent her last message, she knew she'd made a grave error. "X-O?" she said into her empty office. "What is the MATTER with me?" Layla had a bad feeling that she would have to peel Sheldon off the ceiling when she came to get him tonight.

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

The second Sheldon was home from work, he was at Penny's door.

_Knock knock knock_

"Penny."

_ Knock knock knock_

"Penny."

_ Knock knock knock_

"Penny!"

"Oh my god, Sheldon, what?" Penny cried, flinging open the door. She could count on Sheldon knocking just as Freddie Prinze Junior was about to tell Rachel Leigh Cook that he loved her.

"I am in need of your expertise once again, much to my chagrin," Sheldon replied, brandishing his cell phone at her.

Sighing, Penny took it from him and read a text message from Layla. She'd ended it with an 'xo'.

"Uh huh?"

"Penny, this is an emergency! I need more from you than just syllables!"

"Well what do you want me to say, honey? She just said xo, it's no big deal! That's how you sign off with someone when you care about them."

Sheldon looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "Does such a gesture require reciprocation?"

Penny ran that through her mental Sheldon to normal dictionary, and replied, "Were you supposed to do it back?"

"That's what I said."

"Alright, well then no. I don't think so. Layla probably didn't mean for it to be a big deal." Penny replied. "You think too much."

"I do not. I think you'll find my cognitive processes are perfectly adequate for someone of my intelligence quotient. She's picking me up at seven. Should I draw attention to it?"

"I really don't think you have to, sweetie; she'll be fine."

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

Layla picked Sheldon up promptly at seven, and, following Penny's advice, did not comment on the 'xo'. She smiled and his overly-emotional abdominal sphincter contracted at the sight. He followed proper social protocol and asked after her day. Layla laughed lightly.

"Oh, today I had a couple of classes, nothing terribly exciting. Did you know some math majors _really _aren't fit to speak in public?"

"I think that's a little judgemental," Sheldon replied.

"Well, not all math majors are perfectly insane, but this one… when he speaks, I just want to wave a pamphlet at him about the effects of marijuana." They traded similes and metaphors all the way to Layla's, then they ordered Indian food and talked some more about music.

Since she'd played those songs for him, Sheldon had become intrigued; he had read up on the history of Derek and the Dominoes, and he'd downloaded some Cream songs to his iTunes. Usually his musical tastes catered more to the classical, but now… it appeared that Layla had made changes once again to his well- ordered life.

"So did you like it?" Layla asked excitedly.

"Yes, I found Eric Clapton's music very stimulating."

"Did you happen upon Joy Division in your research?"

"No," Sheldon replied. "Is that another band?"

"Is that another band," she rolled her eyes. "Is Neils Bohr _just_ another scientist?" she got up and went to her record player. "I'm so excited I get to be a part of your musical education." Layla laughed, bouncing on the balls of her feet as the white noise began.

Dahlia curled up next to Layla on the sofa as she explained to Sheldon about Ian Curtis and Bernard Sumner. They listened to Queen and Kiss and The Grateful Dead. Sheldon actually laughed, laughed, even though it was his crazy hyperventilating giggle.

Their evening was interrupted when Sheldon's cell phone rang. "Hello Leonard," he said in surprise.

"Hey buddy, I was just calling to ask what you were up to," Leonard replied. "We're about to go out, but it's almost nine o'clock, so I wanted to check in."

"It's almost nine o'clock?" Sheldon turned in his seat to read the clock on the wall. Layla's eyes widened, leaning around his body to check for herself.

"Oh my god!" she gasped.

"Thank you for calling Leonard, have a pleasant evening." Sheldon hung up. "It is later than I had anticipated."

"Yeah," she smiled. "Time flies when it goes by in three minute songs." Layla shooed the puppy off the sofa and turned to him. "Would you like me to take you home?"

His head turned to the left, the way it did when he was considering something, then he replied, "Maybe after The tragically Hip."

**I only put the Hip in there because they're Canadian, and too many people have no idea who they are. Seriously. Check them out.**


	23. The Nowitski Crippling

Layla drove Sheldon home far later than she'd meant to. They were quiet as she pulled her car in beside Leonard's. She was just about to turn to him to say goodnight, when Sheldon jumped out of the car and rounded the hood to open her door. Layla smiled, getting out of the car and standing next to him.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." He replied promptly. "I have been given to understand that a lady should not have to ask for a goodnight kiss."

"You mean, you're going to kiss me?"

"Well, yes." Sheldon held his head up a little higher. "I've been researching, and it's generally considered the role of the man to bestow the goodnight kiss."

"I'd like that very much, Sheldon." Layla laughed, stepping closer to him. Sheldon placed one hand on her waist and leaned down, kissing her softly. Layla smiled up against his lips and wound her arms around his neck. Amazingly, he stepped a little closer to her, so she was pressed right up against him and his hand was resting on her back. She moaned a little, pressing one hand to his cheek and they came up for air. "Wow." She gasped, opening her eyes after a minute.

Sheldon cleared his throat and nodded. "Indeed." He breathed. "I- I think I should… go in now."

"Right," Layla smiled. "Text me later?"

"Of course." He smiled, the normal little quirk of his lips. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight Sheldon."

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

The next afternoon, Leonard texted Layla on her lunch hour:

**Sheldon's given his talk to the grad students; every year a couple girls try to hit on him. Come to lunch? **

Layla looked at the message and her brow furrowed. There were women every year who tried to hit on Sheldon? _Grad students_? Sheldon couldn't possibly allow that, could he? Grabbing her purse and her sunglasses, Layla jogged out to her car. She would go to lunch at Cal Tech, just to keep those floozies away from her theoretical physicist.

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

"Wew, hewwo," Barry Kripke said as Layla entered the cafeteria. She stopped and turned, looking at him in wary surprise.

"Uh, hello…" she replied. This guy was a little creepy, and his speech impediment was throwing her off.

"What's a beautiful wady wike you doing in our wowly cafeteria?"

"Uh, I'm looking for Dr Sheldon Cooper."

"Layla?" Sheldon asked as the tall brunette walked into the cafeteria. She smiled at him, and sidestepped Kripke, who followed her.

"Hi sweetie, sorry for the change of plans," she smiled. "Leonard texted me to say you'd given your talk to the lowly grad students," she winked at him. "And I'm here to ward off any female ones who might have designs on you." She smiled at Kripke. "Thank you very much for your help."

"_Designs_?" Sheldon asked suspiciously. He looked at the other boys. "When did a grad student have designs on me? And Kripke, go away, Layla Is not going to go out with you."

"I don't see why not." Kripke replied.

"Because she goes out with Sheldon." Howard sighed, as though it actually pained him to say so.

"Sewioswy?"

"You have no idea how much it hurts, but it's true." Leonard replied.

"Don't look now, buddy, but a former member of the 'We Love Sheldon' fan club is walking this way," Howard mumbled under his breath. Leonard looked past Layla to see a lithe redhead striding their way.

"Uh oh," Leonard cringed, grabbing a chair from another table and moving over so Layla could sit next to Sheldon, "Ramona." Raj made a slight 'eep!' and looked determinedly down at his lunch.

"Hello, Dr. Cooper," Ramona smiled, batting her eyelashes furiously.

"Ramona," Sheldon replied nervously. "I trust your school is going well?"

"Yes it is. Although I have no doubt we'd all be better off if you were to teach us!" The redhead giggled and leaned on the table. Howard, sitting directly across from Sheldon, slid his chair noisily out of her reach.

"I don't doubt that either," he replied, allowing himself one moment of conscious superiority before he changed the subject, "Have you met Professor Layla Nicholas?"

"N-no," Ramona did a double take at the woman sitting next to him. "Nice to meet you, Professor."

"And you, Miss?" Layla offered the girl so obviously flirting with her boyfriend her hand.

"Nowitski." 

"Right, Miss Nowitski. You're a grad student?" she asked, one eyebrow raised in challenge. Sheldon was now looking between the two with a worried expression.

"Yes, in physics." Ramon replied, making eyes at Sheldon.

"Layla is a history professor at UCLA." Leonard said.

"Really?" Ramona couldn't hide her disdain.

"Yes," Layla replied, laying one hand on Sheldon's shoulder, her smile widening when he didn't pull away. "I specialize in Civil and Napoleonic War History."

Ramona's eyes zeroed in on Layla's hand and her mouth thinned into a line. "Dr Cooper, why are you letting that _woman_ touch you?"

"Hm?" Sheldon asked, his voice an octave higher than usual. "Oh, Layla's… Layla…" he looked at his friends for help. Howard and Leonard averted their eyes, and Raj simply shrugged.

"Sheldon and I are… seeing each other."

"You… you what!" The redhead's skin flushed and her eyes bugged. "Dr Cooper, you are seeing someone so below your own brilliance, while someone else with far more complimentary skills to your own, i.e. ME, works not one building away!"

"Um… yes?" Sheldon replied, obviously scared of the other woman's wrath. Layla leaned over Sheldon, laying one hand on his thigh, and spoke in a deadly voice.

"Listen to me, you little hussy. You have the gall to come up here and flirt with my boyfriend to my _face_ and try to steal him away? I might be a few years older than you, but don't think for a second that I can't have you on the floor and crying for your mama in thirty seconds. And I don't think you have the guts to cross me. Now why don't you go back to your office and forget you ever tried to mess with me."

Ramona blanched, then opened and closed her mouth a few times before spinning on her heel and marching out of the cafeteria. Layla smiled in satisfaction and sat back in her seat, removing her hand from Sheldon's upper thigh.

"That was so hot." Howard gasped.

Layla laughed, shaking her head. "Thank you, I think."

"Oh, you are so welcome." Howard's hands mysteriously disappeared beneath the table, and Layla kicked his shin. "Ow!"

"Well then don't ever put your hands under the table when you're talking to me." She and Sheldon wore identical glares.

"Yeah okay," Howard sighed. Lunch went on the way Sheldon's schedule demanded, and when it was time for the boys to head back to work, Layla stood up.

"Alright, gentlemen, have a good day." She grinned, giving them a wave. She took two steps before she realized Sheldon was following her. "Isn't it time to go back to work?"

"Yes, but I have been reading up on romantic etiquette, and it is apparently the man's duty to walk the lady out should she come to visit him." The scientist replied.

"You're really getting into this," she giggled as they went to the parking lot. "It's kind of nice."

"Well, it's only proper that I research the social protocols in the relationship paradigm." She saw his face twitch out of the corner of her eye. "You told Ramona I was your boyfriend."

"I know, I'm sorry," she winced. "I was just trying to cement my place in your life so she wouldn't try to break us up."

"I see," his brow furrowed, and she could almost see the gears turning. "So you're not really my girlfriend."

"I could be if you'd like," Layla blushed, "But I thought maybe we should mutually agree on that sort of thing."

"Is this that conversation?"

"I don't know, you're the man," she teased, "Would you like to talk about this now?"

"I don't think there's much to talk about; would you like me to be your girlfriend?"

"I would not be opposed to using such a descriptor."

"Good, neither would I. Nothing would have to change, necessarily. I think we'd already agreed to just make changes as they come, and not to rush." They had walked into the sunlight, and were headed to Layla's car.

"Of course." When they were both looking ahead, Sheldon reached over and just barely gripped her fingers, just as she'd done to him that night at her sister's. Layla smiled up at him. When they reached her car, she took his other hand and stepped in front of him.

"So, am I coming over for vintage video game night?" she asked.

Sheldon leaned in and kissed her lightly. "You may, since you've become another member of my social group. I think Penny will expect you to be there. She's gotten quite used to having you around."

"Okay, I'll see you then." She kissed him again, applying more pressure. Sheldon took a step, putting her off- balance, so she was leaning against the driver's side door. Layla laid her hands on his forearms, and opened her mouth a little. She wasn't thinking about Sheldon's hang-ups about personal hygiene, just running the tip of her tongue against his lips. Amazingly enough, his lips parted. Not wanting to push her luck, Layla didn't enter his mouth very far, just barely licking the roof of his mouth. She pulled back, looking up at him. "Wow. I uh, I have a class in half an hour. I should go."

"Right, I'll see you tonight," Sheldon replied, breathing a little heavier also. She kissed his cheek and got into her car, driving off with a wave.

**So, there we are! I have one more chapter in mind, and then maybe an epilogue, 10 or so years in the future? Or is that too corny? Anyway, I kind of want to show what happens to Sheldon and Layla. Merry Christmas/ Feliz Navidad, Happy Hanukkah**/**Kwanzaa/Rohatsu/Ramadan and Yule! Have a great holiday! xox**


	24. The Sheldon 2 Point 0 Possibility

The next day, Saturday, Layla invited Sheldon over for lunch. While they were preparing, they talked idly about his history with Ramona. Layla's dislike of the other woman was obvious even to Sheldon, and he found her jealousy a little flattering.

There was something that had been bothering him since the night before. Howard had made several crude innuendos during vintage video game night, alluding to the fact that Sheldon and Layla had 'done it'. He wasn't sure what bothered him more; the fact that they hadn't engaged in coitus, or the fact that everyone thought they had.

"Layla, do you think it is unusual that someone in our… relationship paradigm haven't had…" he remembered what Leonard had told him about using the word 'coitus' out loud. "Intercourse?"

Layla froze, raising her head slowly to look straight ahead. She turned her face to him, her eyes wide.

"I- um, I- seriously?" she asked. Sheldon nodded. "Well, I don't know. I mean, we've only known each other a little while, but most people would have… consummated their relationship by now. But you're you, perhaps we should extend the normal schedule."

"I think that would make me more comfortable." He replied.

They proceeded in comfortable silence for a while, and then she spoke up again. "My sister is pregnant again."

"Emily is pregnant?"

"Yeah, her and Henry talked about it, and they decided they wanted to be parents a third time." She sighed. "I don't know how you'd begin a conversation like that."

"I would imagine it would begin with a greeting, such as, "'Hello Henry—'"

"Its okay, Sheldon, it was a rhetorical question." She smiled. "But a child is a huge responsibility. How would you even decide you could do it? Financially, emotionally, to know how this would affect Isabelle and Gregory? It's just a lot to handle."

"Indeed. Would… would you like a child someday?"

"Maybe, I never really gave it much thought." She shrugged. "What about you?"

"I would like to produce progeny, certainly, since there is a distinct chance that any offspring would inherit my superior genes."

"So then would you have to reproduce with someone who was just as brilliant as you?" Layla asked.

"No, I've done the Punnet Squares. I've discovered that even if I were to have children with someone of average intelligence, my traits would be more likely to manifest themselves." Sheldon shrugged.

"So then you could have babies with someone like me, then." She concluded.

"I didn't say that," he replied. Layla's mouth dropped open in surprise.

"O-oh," she nodded. "Okay."

"You're above the average intelligence. Therefore we weren't talking about you." Sheldon didn't look at her, just continued to slice sandwiches precisely.

"Oh," she smiled and felt her cheeks warm. "So if we were talking about you having a baby with someone of above average intelligence, you could have children with me."

"I would not be opposed to that." Layla could see his ears turning pink under her smiling gaze. "I am going to assume we don't need to create an equation to determine when we should produce descendants."

"Sheldon, kiss me." She demanded. He looked at her, those enormous blue eyes searching her face for any kind of social cue. She didn't know what he saw, but nonetheless he leaned forward and softly brushed his lips against hers. When he pulled away, brow furrowed, she smiled. "This is good. We'll figure everything else out."

**Author's Notes: The next chapter will be the last one, set ten years in the future. I decided corny wasn't so bad, thanks to mistressofdarkness666 for reminding me of that. So this chapter was little, and I'm sorry for that, but it was a setup for chapter 25. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! I think my next fanfic will be Sheldon/Penny, since I love that ship too.**


	25. Epilogue: The Baby Genius Unavoidability

**Please tell me if you don't think this sounds… Sheldon-y enough. I wasn't sure about it.**

**This takes place just before Halloween, my favourite holiday besides St Patrick's Day. Thank you so much for all your reviews and support, especially to BreeHime, who has offered unwavering encouragement from the start. **

**Ten Years Later**

**SLSLSLSLSLSLSLSL**

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"Why doesn't Amelia like you?" Marianne Cooper was helping her father clean the apartment. At five, she was just as inquisitive and insightful as her parents, with Sheldon's big blue eyes and Layla's willowy stature. She also had her mother's temper, and Sheldon knew not to lie to either of them.

Layla's mother refused to let any of her grandchildren call her Grandma, so Isabelle, Gregory, Sara and Marianne called her by her first name.

Sheldon sighed and looked up from where he was drying the dishes. "Well, Amelia doesn't like me because she doesn't think an academic is good enough for her daughter."

"But Papa is an academic," she replied.

"Exactly. I'm afraid your mother's parents don't like each other, either."

"Oh. But Mum married you anyway?" Marianne asked.

"Yes she did," Layla replied, coming into the kitchen carrying a basket of freshly cleaned sheets. "You see Mar, your daddy was just so sweet, and I couldn't help myself." She winked and kissed her husband's cheek.

Sheldon blushed. "Not in front of Marianne."

Layla rolled her eyes. "Also, your Grandma Mary wouldn't let us procreate until we got married."

"Because Grandma Mary is a Christian who doesn't think that people should have children out of wedlock," Marianne surmised, nodding. "She's a weird one."

"Marianne Iris Cooper, don't judge your grandmother for having her beliefs. She adores you, you know." Layla raised a brow at her daughter.

Marianne eyed her father for the final judgement. Sheldon nodded, giving his only child a 'listen to your mother' glare. The little girl sighed, and nodded her head. She may have been young, but she had her parents' intelligence, and therefore knew not to push the subject.

"Daddy, can you be Green Lantern for Halloween this year?" Marianne struck up a new subject.

"I'm going to be Spock, like I am every year." Sheldon replied.

"Because Aunt Penny said I could dress up and go to her Halloween Party."

"Absolutely not."

"Oh, Sheldon, relax; we're taking her trick or treating anyway, and she just wants to see everyone before I put her to bed." wheedled. For someone who approached the idea of 'progeny' so logically, he certainly was over protective of their little girl. Then again, she shouldn't have been surprised; Sheldon didn't adjust well to change.

"We are _not_ taking Marianne trick or treating," Sheldon disputed. "The odds of getting a tainted piece of candy are significantly increased if the candy is given by a stranger. Besides, can you imagine the germs? No!"

"I already told her little friend Emma's parents we would come with them around their block." Layla said. "It's perfectly safe." She assured. "And we should all match this year; even though I enjoy being the Nurse Chapel to your Mr Spock, they never had babies." She winked at her daughter, who giggled. "Your daughter came up with a secondary plan all by herself."

"Really?" Sheldon asked dubiously. "I would be willing to hear this alternate proposal; only for the purpose of intellectual conversation."

Marianne straightened into the 'lecture' pose she inherited from Sheldon. "Well, you could be Green Lantern, making Mum Hawk Girl and I could be Rex," she ignored her father's offended sound, "I know that's not the way the original comic series goes, but it works for us. Or, you can be the Flash, Mum is still Hawk Girl, and I get to be Kendra West."

"Kendra West doesn't have any powers." Sheldon protested.

"Well… then why don't you be Spider Man, Mum can be Mary Jane Watson, and I can be May Parker, the Spider Girl from the comic series." Marianne turned to her mother, who gave her a high five.

"That is an acceptable compromise, but I still refuse to change my original plans."

"Don't worry, dear, we'll wear him down." Layla whispered to her daughter.

"Yes!" the little girl squealed, wrapping her arms around her father's waist, then skipping over to the door. "I'm going to tell Aunt Penny!"

Sheldon sighed as he helped his wife fold a fitted sheet. "Must you always undermine my authority? I'm her father."

"Sheldon, Marianne is a little girl. She might be a brilliant little girl, but she likes the same things her friends of average intelligence do. She wants to go trick or treating, and go to birthday parties, and one day perhaps she may want to bring a boy home to meet you. She just wants to impress you; so I would advise you just... let her."

"She does impress me." Sheldon replied. "Now I know how my mother and father felt when they were raising me. It's astonishing."

"Yes it is." She stepped closer under the guise of bringing her edges of the sheet to his, and kissed him. "I know her activeness makes you a little uncomfortable, but compared to normal kids, she's positively calm. Just let her be herself, just like your parents did with you."

"How is it, with the disparity in our IQs, you could possibly know so much more than me?" he asked no one in particular, sounding positively amazed.

I have the mothering instinct." Layla smiled. "Aren't you glad you had a baby with me?"

"Who else would I have had babies with?" he asked in confusion. "You were the only woman who came anywhere close to meeting my requirements, and could stand my many... quirks."

"Oh, your requirements?" Layla laughed, tossing the sheet into the basket and grabbing a pillowcase. "What about my requirements?"

"We never talked about your requirements."

"No, we didn't. That's because I don't have very many. But you fill all of them, Sheldon, I promise." She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered some interesting things in his ear, in French. He only understood every few words, but her message got across.

"Layla!" he yelped, jumping back and banging his body against the refrigerator. "That's hardly appropriate! It's twelve o'clock on a Saturday afternoon!"

"Oh, we all know Marianne will be over with Penny for at least an hour, playing dress up or whatever the two of them do over there." She smiled as he wrapped one arm around her waist. "Come on."

Protesting all the way, Sheldon allowed himself to be led back into the bedroom, where miraculously, his complaints ceased.

**Okay, so I know I didn't explain where Leonard went, but just go with me. I always imagined him moving upstairs into that 'Alisha's' apartment, because she would obviously have moved out. I'm also a big fan of him and Awesome Dr Stephanie giving it another try. So I hope you enjoyed this. The History Paradox is not the end of my foray into Sheldon fan fiction; Shenny is the next pairing, and then maybe a little story arc about that lounge singer idea I had. Meanwhile, please enjoy this play list of songs that fit this fanfic.**

**** The sequel to this story is Geek Getting Hitched, and it's almost done. Link on my page.**

**The History Paradox Song List: This is my musical muse: the songs I used to get my literary juices flowing. All of them have some kind of reference to a character trait of either Sheldon or Layla, or one of their romantic situations. I hope you enjoy them!**

Weak in the Knees by Serena Ryder

Strangers like Me by Phil Collins.

Because I'm Awesome by The Dollyrots

The Way I Loved You by Taylor Swift

Accidentally in Love by The Counting Crows

On the Verge by Collin Raye

Count Me In by Deena Carter


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